


Tea Leaves and Opal Necklaces

by Noizchild



Series: Wasteland 2011 [18]
Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Adoption, Babies, Baby, Centaurs, Crisis, Dark, F/M, Female-On-Male Rape, First Dates, Greek magic, Heir, Panic, Pregnancy, Pregnant, Rape, Revenge, Therapy, Unease, curse, dying, therapist
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-27
Updated: 2018-01-22
Packaged: 2018-11-19 15:04:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 31
Words: 61,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11315889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Noizchild/pseuds/Noizchild
Summary: Sixth volume is up. One of three stories that follow my poem, "Wasteland 2011." The ladies of the Liao clan are pushing Yao and Ju to have a baby. Despite the unease, the couple agree to get started. However, there are pressing issues are threatening to throw everything into a nasty spinner. Japan still struggles with the Woman in Red haunting him and everyone is panicked by her.





	1. Babies, Secrets, and Signs

Tea Leaves and Opal Necklaces

Match One: Babies, Secrets, and Signs:

My name is Ju Wang and Yao and I are trying to have a baby.

Yes, it's about time for  _that_. Every clan needs an heir. And it's up to me to carry on that obligation. Oh, what about I saying?

Actually, the ladies of clan whom I love dearly, were the ones who pushed me into this plan. To be honest, I hadn't had the time to think that far into my future. (Okay, the clan is part of that future, but I've had other things on my mind.) It started with Bik hinting at me while we out shopping for Biao's graduation from med school.

"So when are we going to see little Yaos and Jus?" she asked at the marketplace. I froze over the ginger root.

"E-E-Excuse me?" I asked. I had an idea what she was implying, but my brain wouldn't let it sink in.

"You know," Bik said. "I would be nice to have a little girl to have around the property again. Plus, I wouldn't mind dressing her up." I turned around with big eyes and all of the color drained from my face.

"Wait, are you asking me when I'm going to have children?!" I asked.

"It would be nice," Bik said with a little shrug. I think I lost the ability to speak in that moment. My mouth fell open, but no sound came out. Bik's smile told me what she was thinking as she patted me on the head.

"It's okay," she said. "You'll have plenty of time to think about it. You're young after all. Young and health." I stood, watching her walk over to the fruit section of the market. What just happened?

It's not just her either.

"It's so good that everyone in this country can have two children now," Cai told me on the same day during lunch.

"Okay…" I said. She moved her arms behind her head.

"Yeah, it would be good to have an heir and a spare," Cai said while looking at the sky. I tilted my head with a weird look on my face.

"Heir and spare?" I asked.

"Yeah," Cai said. "In case the first-born dies. You've just to have a back-up to have an heir take over the clan when you and Yao die."

"Why are you trying to kill off Yao, this imaginary child, and I so much?" I asked. She laughed as she waved me off.

"I'm not," she insisted. "I'm just suggesting that you need to think ahead for your family. You are young and healthy enough for children, after all." I about choked on my tea when she said that.

"Are you okay?" Cai asked.

"No!" I choked out. She rubbed my back and headed me my cup.

"Here, drink this," she said. I downed the tea and took in heavy breaths.

"Better?" Cai asked.

"Yeah," I said. I turned to her. "Please don't do that to me again." She giggled as she put up her hands.

"I apologize," Cai said. She opened her mouth to say something else, but I put up my hand.

"Please don't," I said. "You're only going to make it worse."

"Yes, Ju," she said. Suddenly, I wasn't that hungry anymore.

It didn't take long for Wan, Hark, and Tse to join in on the "let's get Ju and Yao to make babies" plan. That same evening, I paid the Man house a little visit. No sooner had I walked into living room, I noticed something like a shrine sitting next to the TV.

"What… is that?" I asked. Tse jumped when I asked.

"What? Nothing!" she said. "That's nothing!" I walked over to this peculiar looking shrine beside the TV. The more I looked, the more I began to notice the different features decorating.  _Are those… baby objects?_  A pair of white baby sneakers hung tied together by their laces from the top of the shrine. Little baby toys decorated the bottom. Pinks and blues with lace covered the background. To make it worse, Tse had candles and incense lit in front of this shrine. I turned to see her looking like she wanted to run out the door.

"Please don't tell me…" I said. Tse rubbed the back of her head, laughingly nervously.

"Sorry," she said. "Bik and Cai insisted."

"Is the shrine for…?" I began to ask.

"Yes," Tse said, dropping her head and shoulders. Qian, who had been playing a video game at the TV the whole time, rolled his eyes.

"I told you she would notice," he said.

"Hush, you!" Tse hissed. Her son lowered his controller and groaned.

"Why can't all of you come out and say it?" Qian asked. "You just want Ju to have a baby to keep this clan going!" Ju stared at mother and son with a blank stare.

"Don't you have homework to do or something?" Tse asked with her teeth clenched.

"Already did it," he said.

"I'll have Man come and check on it with me when he gets home," she said.

"Yeah, yeah," Qian said. Tse's mood changed to a pleasant one as she turned her focus on me.

"I'm sorry," she said. "Did you want something?" I struggled for about ten minutes before I could say anything.

"Uh… I just going to go," was all that I could say. I dashed out of that house before Tse could say another word.

* * *

So, here we are.

I broke down and began the talk with Yao.

"The mothers of the clan think that it's time that we had a child," I said in our bedroom three nights later.

"Okay," Yao said behind me on our bed. His tone made me whip around from my laptop.

"That's it?" I asked. Yao shrugged.

"I mean, it's up to you," he said. "Do you want children?"

"I don't know. I haven't thought much about it," I admitted. "The ladies keep pushing me to have a child. Wan and Bik have already planning on what to do if it's a girl. Tse even has a fertility shrine for me in her house." Yao covered his mouth as he snickered. I threw a small pillow at him.

"It's not funny!" I said. I leaned over my chair and sighed.

"But seriously, whatever you decide, I will support you," Yao said.

"Thanks," I muttered.

We don't have time to think about babies. There something still coming for all of us. Yao and I haven't talked about it since I showed him that video on my laptop. We're all still on edge about Junjie and Jianjun. Hark and Lili are taking extra measures to protect Szu. Hark even talks about moving Szu far away until Junjie is back in prison.

"Hark," I told her. "You don't have to do all of that. We will protect her, I promise!" I couldn't tell if my voice was shaking or not. Ever since my uncle came to Beijing, Hen-to, Fei, Yao, and I have been plotting to prevent him from taking over the clan. It feels like we are hunting deer. We have the gear and traps ready. We're all really skilled. All that we have to do now is wait.

The waiting is the worst. But that's not the only thing on my mind.

I rubbed my forehead. For some reason, I'm having strange dreams again. They aren't as bad as they were before I got married. I hope that it stays that way.

"Are you feeling okay?" I heard.

"Huh?" I asked as I lifted my head. Yao stared at me with intent.

"Are you sick?" he asked. "You're not tired or anything?"

"Oh, no, no," I said. "I'm fine. I just had so much on my mind." I kind of feel bad in a way. Part of me is still freaked out on pulling him deeper into my mess that began when I first saw that video on that flash drive. I promised myself not to keep anymore secrets from Yao now that we were married. But, I didn't think that I could tell him this. Not telling him this one thing should be fine, right? I mean, he doesn't have to know about this. I doubt that he would even understand what's been going on in my head.

"Babe," I said.

"Yeah?" Yao asked.

"Maybe we should have a baby after all," I said. I didn't know why that came out. Maybe, we needed a distraction from all of this mess.

"Are you sure?" Yao asked.

"Yes," I said. Too late to turn back now. I'm sure they'll be happy to hear that I am deciding to do this.

"I will support your decision," he said. "But only if you are really sure about do this. Having a child is not an easy thing to commit to. I don't want you change your mind when it's too late."

"I realize the pressures and responsibilities of raising a child," I said. "I run this clan, you know."

"Please think on it a little bit longer first," Yao pleaded. "I will support you no matter what you say."

"Fine," I said. "I will think about it first." The words tasted so bitter as they exited my mouth.

"Thank you," Yao said. I dropped my head on my arms. I blurted something out without thinking it through. Of course being a parent won't be easy. Right now, anything to deal with this approaching storm in the distance.

"How are Szu and her parents doing?" Yao asked. I peeked out at him through the crack of my arm.

"Hm? Oh, they are doing well," I said. "Hark and Lili are still on guard. Szu is doing the best that she can." I stood up and walked over to our bed. I lay down beside Yao and looked up at him.

"There isn't much movement on Junjie and Jianjun's part either," she said. "I don't like this waiting around."

"But that's all we can do right now," Yao pointed out. "We don't know what Jianjun has planned or what Junjie is going to do next."

"That's the part that scares me the most," I admitted. My husband patted me on the head as I snuggled up to his side. I slowly began closing my eyes as I let my mind drift off into a space of nothing.

* * *

-Outside-

Kiku already saw the dark autumn crawling towards his beloved home. Five gates had already been opened in Ikebukuro. It wouldn't be long before the last two were found and opened. This evening, the Japanese man held a knife to his wrist.

He can't bring himself to do it. She won't let him do it anyway. That cursed woman needed him alive. She saw the Japanese man as her "investment".

Ha, "investment".

Kiku's been trying to keep his aloof mask over his face, but now the cracks are hard to hide. The other countries were starting to ask questions and trying to see him. Luckily for the charming old man, he had his wife, Sena, keeping them at bay. But lately, a small few have been getting past her guard and trying to talk to him about that cursed woman who won't leave him alone.

Arthur has turned out to be the worst one.

The Englishman seemed to be nervous about something last time he tried to visit the Japanese man. The United Kingdom's lips trembled as if he wanted to shout out what he was really thinking. Did that cursed woman get to him too?

Kiku smacked himself in the cheeks. That couldn't be it. That cursed Woman in Red still was trapped in her pit in the Land of the Dead. There had to be someone else pushing Arthur to try and communicate with him. Kiku wished that he knew who.

Or least had the courage to ask the English man if he was experiencing the same things that he was.

"Honey," Sena said from their bedroom in a tired voice. "You're still up? You're not getting sick again, are you?" Her voice was enough to pull the Japanese man back into reality.

"Ah! No, no! I'm fine," Kiku lied.

"Are you coming to bed?" Sena asked.

"Uh… yeah," her husband said. "I'm sorry to worry you." Kiku put away the knife and walked out of the bathroom.

The whole time, he could feel that cursed woman's eyes piercing his back. How long would it before she was free?

The Japanese man didn't want to think about the answer.


	2. Jōmon Sugi

Match Two: Jōmon Sugi:

Alfred doesn't take no for an answer. Lydia found herself quick to learn this after turning him away many times. This morning, he knocked on the door. As predicted, the young woman greeted him with a frown on her face.

"Yo!" Alfred said with a goofy grin, waving.

"What do you want?" she asked.

"Is Florence in?" he asked. The American man could already see where this game was going to go. He lost count of how many times Lydia turned him away. Alfred told himself each day that this time would be different.

"She's asleep," Lydia said with her eyes narrowed.

"Can I come in anyway?" Alfred asked.

"No."

"Why?"

She threw back her head and groaned. "Alfred! Why can't you accept that you aren't welcome anymore? What is it going to take for you to get that through your thick skull?"

"Have I offended you or something?" the American man asked. Lydia snorted.

"Goodbye, Al," she said. The young woman started to shut the door, but this time Alfred stuck his foot in the doorway.

"Alfred!" Lydia shouted. "What are you doing?!"

"Let me see Florence," the American man said. "You keep turning me away every time I come over. I want to see her again. I don't care if she's asleep or not!"

"Well, you can't!"

"Is it because she's dying?"

Lydia froze with big eyes. Alfred narrowed his eyes. The young woman looked down at her hands. She looked so tiny under him for an eighteen-year-old girl. Earlier in the weeks, Alfred wondered how someone so tiny could be strong enough to stand in his way. Lydia acted like Cerberus when he came by their house. The American man did his best not to get into a fight with her. (He was a big, muscled man, after all. If he laid a hand on her, Alfred could be easily accused of inflicting violence on Lydia from an outsider's point of view.) He gave her a gentle smile.

"That's it, isn't it?" Alfred asked.

"Could you please go away?" Lydia asked. "You're going to make this harder than it needs to be."

"And you think letting Florence die alone is any better?"

"She has me."

"But what if you're not there when she dies, man? You can't keep us apart like this. Please let me in."

Lydia glared as she puffed up her cheeks. "You still won't go away no matter what?"

"No," the American man said. Both stood, waiting for the other to make a movie. Lydia dropped her shoulders and sighed.

"You win," she grumbled. Alfred did his best to keep from squealing like a happy little girl as Lydia moved aside. He hummed as he walked past the young woman. She rolled her eyes and closed the door behind him.

* * *

It almost felt like being home again. Alfred looked around at the closed blinds in the living room.

"Isn't it a bit early to have everything closed up?" he asked. Lydia frowned in the kitchen.

"I don't understand you," she said in a low voice. The American man gave her a puzzled look.

"Huh?" he asked.

"Why do you want to see my sister so desperately?" Lydia asked.

"Because I want to…"

"But why?!" She turned around from the sink with a frosty look on her face. Alfred couldn't see where this was going.

"I'm sorry, but what's the matter?" Alfred asked. The young woman rubbed her forehead.

"I don't get it," she said. The young woman held out her hand as he opened his mouth. "Why are you so interested in my sister? She doesn't have long to live anyway. Having relationship with her now is pointless." Lydia curled her hands into fists at her sides.

"I just can't…" she said.

"Lydia?" a tired voice asked. Alfred and Lydia looked up to see Florence standing in the entrance to the hallway.

"Oh, you're up," her sister said. "I'm sorry if I woke you up." The tree spirit smiled as she shook her head.

"It's okay," she said. Florence turned and noticed Alfred sitting on the couch.

"Yo!" he said, waving.

"Alfred, I'm so happy to see you," she said. "How have you been?"

"Great!" Alfred said, grinning. Lydia snorted and rolled her eyes.

"I'll be in my room," she muttered under her breath. The young woman turned and walked down the hall.

"Why is she so cranky around me?" Alfred whispered.

"She means well," Florence murmured. The American man frowned as he heard the door slam shut. His mood changed when he turned back to his crush.

"Have you eaten yet?" he asked.

"No," Florence answered. Alfred smacked himself on the lap before standing up.

"Okay," he said. "I'll make you something." The tree spirit gave him a puzzled look.

"Alfred?" she asked. The American man turned to her with a big smile on his face.

"I've got this," he said. "You just sit there and wait." Alfred flashed her his heroic smile before he walked into the kitchen. The tree spirit blinked as her dear friend started humming "Yankee Doodle".

* * *

Cooking was never America's strong point. He had never realized that until today. Tofu veggies burgers were supposed to be easy, right? Alfred didn't plan on sticking some patties in the microwave and going from there. Something inside of him took him to make dinner from scratch. He didn't have time to think this through.

Still, Alfred was convinced that this would be easy.

The kitchen looked like a bomb had hit it. Alfred leaned over the island, panting. The tofu veggie burgers looked edible, at least. He could see the disapproving look on Lydia's face if she saw the kitchen. Alfred could already hear her chewing him out.

"Don't you know that you're supposed to clean the kitchen as you cook?" she would ask. She would go on and on about how to clean up behind himself and nag him on his techniques. Alfred shook his head. Florence was supposed to be the main focus of this dinner, not little miss "I'm a sour puss".

Right…

Alfred got up and looked at his carnage. The burgers looked cooked right. Their stove always confused him. So much so that Lydia forbade him to touch it.

"We don't you make us homeless!" she snapped. The more the American man looked at the burgers, the more he became uncertain. They looked done to him. Maybe just heat them a little bit longer in the microwave to be certain.

"Is everything okay there?" Florence asked again.

"Yes!" Alfred said. "Everything is fine! I've got this! In fact, why don't you go and sit at the table?"

"Okay," she said. Good, that bought him enough time to cook their veggie tofu burgers and clean up the kitchen before Lydia jumped down his throat. He went back over to the fridge and got out the rest of the trimming to make their burgers.

When everything was complete, Alfred leaned against the kitchen, panting.

"Now I see why I don't cook too often," he muttered. At least, he produced something that could be eaten and it looked like food. Better than what Arthur could ever do. Alfred put the finishing touches on the burgers and carried dinner out on tray.

"Sorry to keep you waiting," he said. Florence looked up to see Alfred holding tray with burgers and deep-fried vegetables. He broke into a huge grin.

"I made it myself," he said. "These are tofu veggie burgers topped with mushrooms, tomatoes, lettuce, and some mozzarella cheese."

"Oh thank you," Florence said.

"I wasn't sure if the burgers were cooked all the way," the American man said as he served her plate. "Please let me know how it is." He sat down across from her with his plate.

"It looks delicious," the tree spirit said. She picked up the burger and took a bite. Alfred held his breath as she started chewing. He already had a back-up plan in case things didn't go right. Her chewing the first bite seemed to drag on. The American man perked up when she finally swallowed.

"How is it?" he asked. Florence broke into a big smile.

"This is really good," she said.

"Huh?" Alfred asked. The American man picked up his burger and took a bite. He slowly nodded.

"This is really good," he said. "It turned out better than I thought it would."

"You made this yourself?"

Alfred broke into a huge grin. "I sure did!"

"Do you cook often?"

"No."

Florence looked up with a surprised look. "Really?"

The American man chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head. "Well, I just sticking things into the microwave."

"So you've never used a stove before?"

"I have… once or twice."

"You've done a good job." Florence took another bite of her burger. Alfred laughed at his sudden success. The tree spirit ate like she hadn't eaten all day. As he watched her, warm feelings began to bubble up in his chest again.

"I like you," he said. His crush lifted her eyes.

"Excuse me?" she asked. The American man put down his burger.

"I really do like you," he said. "Could we good back to Coney Island this summer, just you and I?"

"Coney Island, you and me?" Florence asked.

"Yes," Alfred said. He had sweet little baby eyes as he spoke. He had some skills with wooing a girl, but Florence was hard for him to read. She didn't rely on modern life's toys to be happy. Her idea of a perfect day would be to live out in nature with just the sweet grass underneath her and the warm sun on her face. By now, America had the right plans to win her over before her death.

"When can we go?" Florence asked. Alfred about fell out of his chair.

"You want to go to Coney Island? With me? Alone?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied. "So when are we going?"

"Wow! Uh… Are you free at any time?"

"Yes I am."

"How does this weekend sound?"

"That sounds great."

Alfred could have flown away to the clouds. He rubbed the back of his head and chuckled. "Okay." They spent the rest of dinner talking and eating. Alfred still preferred actual meat in burgers than veggies and tofu. But somehow, eating them with Florence made the taste bearable. Maybe he could suck it up and ask Lydia for cooking tips the next time he made dinner for the girls. Alfred leaned forward on the table with a smile on his face.

"What is it?" the tree spirit asked. He shook his head.

"Nothing," the American man said. "You've got a little bit of lettuce on your chin there." Florence reached up and wiped her chin with her napkin.

"Did I get it?" she asked.

"Hold on," he said. Alfred reached out and took the piece of lettuce off of her chin.

"There you go," he said.

"Thank you," the tree spirit said. The American man resisted the urge not to laugh. It would be better to sweeten up everything between them before going in to ask her to be his girlfriend.

"How does ten sound for our date?" he asked.

"Date?" Florence asked.

"When we go to Coney Island this weekend."

"Ah. Yeah, that's fine."

"Okay, I'll put it in my phone." Alfred grinned to himself.  _Score!_  He quickly pushed that out of his head and looked at her face.  _Wait… can she hear thoughts?_

"Hey Florence," he spoke up.

"Hm?" the tree spirit asked.

"Can you hear thoughts?" Alfred asked.

"No, but I can feel emotions," Florence said. The American man sat back with intrigued look on his face.

"I see," he said. "What does that mean?"

"I can't exactly explain it," she said. "It's just something that I was born with."

"Okay…" Alfred said. It still flew over his head, but it didn't bother him for the rest of dinner.

* * *

"Goodbye," Alfred said at the door.

"I'm so happy you came by to see me," Florence said as she saw him out. He broke into a big grin and pointed to his chest.

"I'll be back to cook dinner for you tomorrow!" the American man bragged. The tree spirit giggled.

"I'll look forward to it," she said. "Good night." Alfred waved as she closed the door. He waited until she had gone into the house before breaking down and shouting loud enough to the skies.

"I did it!" he yelled. The American man raced down the street feeling like he could fly away to bliss. Along the way, he began planning his future with Florence. Their date to Coney Island would be first. Then a few more dates. Pretty soon, they would be a couple.

But, Alfred froze on the sidewalk.

Wait… How would a relationship between them even work? They were two different species. Could they have sex? Could they even have children? Plus, he couldn't forget the fact that she was dying. The American man knew that he would have to hurry if he wanted a relationship before she died. How long before it all came to an end?

Alfred shook his head.

"I'll just work through it as I good along," he said to himself. However, something else caught his attention. That little girl that kept appearing in front of him stood further down the street. Her empty eyes locked on him as she clutched her Hello Kitty backpack. Alfred went pale as he slowly backed away.

"What do you want from me?" he asked. The little girl didn't answer him. The birds and the crickets filled the dense silence between the man and child.


	3. Dark Faerie

Match Three: Dark Faerie:

She had her talons hooked into him.

Arthur could feel Hecate standing beside him. She followed him wherever he went. Despite not physically being there, he could still tell. The thought made him gulp. Her eyes stayed locked on his back. Hecate may have been beautiful, but the Englishman knew her true nature. When she smiled, he could feel a little bit of his soul dying inside. She reminded him what he needed to do without saying a word. Arthur hadn't give her his answer. Hecate, her mother, and her sisters wouldn't take no for an answer.

"The world will be coming to an end," Hecate said in his bed last night. The sheets damp with sweat came just below her breasts. Arthur sat on the bed beside in the dark, trembling. His eyes looked hollowed with no soul. She sat up and rubbed on his shoulders.

"We've already taken the first step, my dear Arthur," she whispered in his ear. "You can't walk away from it now. My sisters and I have already opened five gates in Ikebukuro. It won't be long before we open last two and have the new gods in the new world." The English man tried to push her off.

"You can deny it all you want," Hecate said. "But it's already here. You can't stop it now."

The English man tries to keep calm and carry on. He couldn't sleep anymore. His favorite beverage, blood, began to smell and taste like blood. Flying Min Bunny avoided him with the look of dread in his eyes. The rest of his imaginary friends could no longer reach him. Francis tried to make fun of him, but Arthur walked straight past him and didn't look up.

"Britain?" the French man asked.

Every night, Arthur found himself drinking more of Hecate's poison. Tonight, she waited for him in his bed. Before that, Arthur could already taste the sick in his mouth. She was the one who pushed him into this. She waited for him at his front door one night. Just by the look on her face, Hecate had one agenda on her mind. The color drained from Arthur's face as he stopped in his tracks. She stepped forward with only a hint of emotion in her eyes.

"You kept me waiting," she said. Her words felt like a knife. Arthur lowered his eyes. Hecate was always there every night. Her judging eyes locked onto him. The Englishman knew how this story went. Hecate was the devil in unfolding story. She wasn't going to leave until he formed a contact with him. By this time, Arthur began to remember how this would go down if he gave in.

"How long are you going to put this off?" Hecate asked. "This country is already an active player in the game. You have to participate with us, dear Arthur."

"What do you want from me?" Arthur asked. Sweat ran down the side of his head. Hecate walked up to him and put her arms around his shoulders.

"Form the contract with me," she whispered. Her answer never changed. This nightcomer was determined to have him on her side at any cost. Flying Mint Bunny couldn't reach his friend anymore. She saw to that herself.

This type of plan took patience and the right amount of charisma to warm over her prey. Arthur to be the right key for their end of the game to go as they planned. Hecate smiled at the Englishman like an angel.

"How long are you going to keep running away from the end?" she asked. Slowly, she hooked herself into her target. Hecate pressed her lips to his. The Englishman's heart dropped into his stomach as he knew where this would go next. Each time he pushed her off, she would come back stronger. That last kiss drew tears to his eyes.

"Why can't you leave me alone?" Arthur asked in a hoarse voice.

"Our gods need you," Hecate whispered at his lips. "We all need you. I need you." This was the first night as sank her talons into him. Before he knew, her led into her flat. She laid him onto his bed. Hecate sat up and flipped back her hair.

"We will begin our contract," she said. The nightcomer slid off her thick black cloak. Arthur tried not to look at her bare breasts. He could've said no. He could've pushed her off. But why didn't he? She was much smaller in stature than he was. The Englishman could've pushed her off and kicked her out.

Despite that, Hecate had the upper hand. Arthur knew this too well. The nightcomer licked her lips as she could feel his magic leaking from his body. It didn't take him long to strip down and take him. The Englishman's eyes clouded over with an empty darkness in the beginning. Hecate could see her own reflection in them.

"Don't worry, my dear Arthur," she said in a low voice. "The first part is always the hardest." Everything around him went silent after she spoke. He couldn't feel anything around him. His vision became blurred as Hecate rode him.  _Is this going to be the end of me right here and now?_  The last thing he thought about before he tumbled into Hecate's darkness was Alfred's smiling face and his conversation about Florence over the phone.

_I'm sorry, old chap. I didn't want to do this to you. Please forgive me._

Hecate pressed her lips against his as every part of him shut down.

From the first night, their contract began. Afterwards, Arthur was sitting in the corner of his room, naked and trembling. Hecate lay in his bed with a catlike smile on her face.

"I don't see why you are upset," she said. "This type of thing is normal." Her tone and words was like a kick to an injured dog. This nightcomer would be at his house every night to finish the contract. Tonight would be the last night.

Seven times. Hecate would come to him seven times before the real damage could begin. As it stood, everyone else was wrapped up in their problems. The older countries panicked about that Woman in Red. Wang Ja plotted how to get Lin Yi and himself out of the agreement between Ivan and Yao. Kiku was still holed up in his house, suffering from his break down. Yao and Ju were dealing with their clan. Ivan was in Ikebukuro at the moment. Alfred was trying to get closer to Florence. Ludwig seemed preoccupied with his own problems. The Italian brothers understand the gravity of this situation. Neither would Peter or any of the younger countries.

Arthur found himself alone. The Englishman did try to reach out to Francis, but Hecate already warned him against it. That didn't stop the French man from picking up the poison drowning his friend-rival.

"You look so pale," Francis said.

"Do I?" his rival asked. He tried to put on his usual sarcastic tone.

"What's going on?" the French man asked. The English man quickly shook his head.

"N-Nothing," he lied.

"Don't tell me that you can't feel it too."

"Feel what?"

Francis grabbed him by the shoulders. "Can't you see it? She is coming back. We are all in danger here. Now is not the tie to hold anything back." Arthur pushed him away.

"I have to go," he said. The Englishman turned and walked away.

"Britain!" Francis shouted as the door closed behind him.

Outsides, Hecate stood waiting for the Englishman. Once again, Arthur looked like everything had been drained from him. The nightcomer's lips curved into a smirk.

"I don't like that French man," she said.

"Please don't do anything to him," Arthur pleaded in a hoarse voice. "He didn't do anything. He has nothing to do with this." Hecate gently took him by the cheeks.

"I won't," she said. "But I can't say the same for my mum and sisters." The Englishman trembled as she gently kissed him. He couldn't bring himself to push her away. They've done this six times. She wouldn't let him back out of the seventh. Hecate already had her talons in too deep to give up now.

Arthur looked like he was walking up to his execution as they made it back to his flat. It had started to pour down by this time. That wasn't the only thing different tonight.

Arthur pinned Hecate against the wall. The nightcomer looked deep into his eyes. He didn't look empty like the previous six night she came to him.

"Have you finally submitted to your fate?" she asked. The Englishman didn't answer. He leaned in and kissed her on the lips. Well, not so much of a kiss, more like he bit on her the lower lip. And bite he did. Hecate shivered as she felt the blood running down her chin. Arthur pulled away with an empty look in his eyes.

"Why stop out here?" the nightcomer asked. "Take me to your room." He grabbed her by the wrists and pulled her away with him. What was going through his mind at the time? Arthur probably didn't know himself at the time. Hecate said nothing as she was thrown back onto the bed. She already knew she had won.

"There is no turning back from this," the nightcomer reminded him. Arthur had no emotion his face as he started to undress. Hecate took off her cloak as well. In one last night, the Englishman lost what was left of his soul. How could this serpent of a woman lead him into her poisonous trap? He was the proud United Kingdom. He owned half of the world. Is this what he had been reduced down to? A mere puppet in a game to end the world?

He shut down himself down for the last part of the contract. Who was going to be the master and familiar here? Hecate never made that clear. This part scared him the most. Before he knew it, the contract was complete. Arthur collapsed beside of her, panting and feeling destroyed. Hecate tapped him on the tip of his nose.

"The contract has been fulfilled," she said.

"What happens now?" Arthur asked.

"You and I will always be bound until the End of Days begins," Hecate said. "I will always be by your side, watching you."

She wasn't alone.

Her sisters always follow him just as bad as she does. Arthur could hear their voices in his head non-stop. They blended in with the crowds of London at night. Possibility to prevent him from backing out at the last minute.

"They are everywhere, you know," Hecate pointed out. "You can't walk away from this." The more she said it, the more it sank in. At last, Arthur fell to his knees with a hollowed look in his eyes.

Meanwhile, the storm started circles the other countries as well.


	4. Eindringlich

Match Four: Eindringlich:

Elizabeta began to notice something wrong with Ludwig as more the Gates to the Apocalypse were being opened.

She wasn't the only one either.

-Ludwig-

He started to see her more frequently. That girl in the red coat wouldn't say anything, but her eyes told him everything he needed to know. Ludwig wished that he could help her. She still wanted to go to 6972 Polanów.

Funny thing, that place didn't exist anymore.

Ludwig did some research on a sleepless night to find out more information on the address. The village had been completely destroyed during the second World War and completely built over. Surely, she must be aware of this. Ludwig even tried to tell her as much. Whether she understood him or not, he began to doubt that.

Tonight, was no different.

Ludwig had just gotten help from another tense meeting when he spotted that timid young woman sitting on his front step. She still looked like she wanted to run away. Only this time, she wasn't trembling as much. Ludwig decided to try a different approach with her tonight.

"Good evening," the German said.

"Good… Evening…?" the woman replied. When Ludwig stepped forward, she cowered away, clutching her coat. The German man paused in his tracks.

"Look, I'm not going to hurt you," he said. "I won't yell at you. I just want to talk to you. Is that okay?" The woman stared at him with her big eyes. Ludwig sighed and dropped his shoulders.

"Now, why do you want to go to Polanów so badly?" he asked. "The address you showed me doesn't exist anymore. I checked."

"It doesn't exist?" the woman asked.

"No," he said. "You won't find whatever it is you are looking for. The place you are trying to get to was destroyed by the war."

"The war?" she asked. As she spoke, her voice began to crackle. Ludwig could see the tears forming in her eyes.

"I'm so sorry," he said. Her tears ran down her cheeks. Ludwig noticed her mumbling something.

"What did you say?" he asked. The German man slowly walked up to the crying woman. She kept mumbling something through her tears.

"I can't hear what you are saying," Ludwig said. "Could you please speak up?" He reached out and took hold of her fragile wrist. But his fingers touched her skin, her words came through loud enough to make him freeze.

" _Why did he betray me?!"_

A hollow scream rang in Ludwig's ears as he began to see fire. The wails of mothers and their crying babies couldn't compare to the horror of war that he lived through. He sat the woman sitting naked with her knees to her chest in the darkness. She looked like she hadn't eaten in months. She kept mumbling something with her face buried.

Suddenly, the doors were pushed open. The woman lifted her head as she sobbed. Only, she had cherry red sockets where her eyes were supposed to be. Either gun shots or fire crackers rang through the fire.

There was a scream and then…

Nothing.

* * *

When Ludwig woke up, the sun was high in the sky through the trees. The German man lay in the grass on his back. He rubbed his head as he sat up. Ludwig then noticed that he was alone. He wondered what just happened? The German man stared at the empty sky and trembled.

-Elizabeta-

She noticed it on a Monday.

As far as Elizabeta could remember, Ludwig was a pragmatic man. If you gave him a chance, he would pick apart a ghost story and point out all of the plot holes in it. He would be the one to calm down Feliciano during a thunderstorm or a battle. Of the three Axis powers, he seemed to be the one with his head firmly on his shoulders.

This latest instance didn't make sense.

She stopped by the German brothers' house to drop off some papers from the office. It was ten in the morning and Feliciano forgot to drop them off at their house last night. Elizabeta couldn't help but smile as she looked at the stack on her lap.

_Feliciano_ , she thought.  _Sometimes we all wonder about you._  Elizabeta shook her head as the cab pulled up to a stop in the driveway. From the window, she spotted Ludwig standing outside, talking to thin air. At first, Elizabeta thought she was seeing things.

_What is he doing?_

The Hungarian woman stepped out of the cab and slowly walked over to the German man.

"Ludwig?" she asked. The man with blonde hair slowly turned around. His eyes looked so empty.

"Elizabeta?" he asked. The Hungarian woman took a step back.

"Who were you talking to just now?" she asked. Ludwig blinked at first.

"You can't see her?" he asked.

"See who?" Elizabeta sked.

"There is a woman with a bright red coat on," he said. "She's standing right there. Can't you see her?" The Hungarian woman looked so confused. Was this some kind of a joke? No, Ludwig had little to no sense of humor that she was aware of.

"No," Elizabeta said. "Are you feeling okay?" The German sighed and dropped his shoulders.

"I don't know myself," he admitted. "I keep seeing this woman everywhere I go. I don't know what she wants with me." Elizabeta nervously laughed as she started backing away.

"Um… listen, I just came be here to drop off some papers," she said. "Here you go!" The Hungarian woman shoved the stack of papers into his arms and ran back into the taxi.

* * *

By noon, Elizabeta got on her phone.

"Hello?" Gilbert asked on the other line.

"What's going on with Germany?" Elizabeta asked.

"What are you talking about?"

"He claimed to be talking to some woman in a red coat, but nobody was there. Is something wrong?"

"Oh…"

"What's going on?"

"Oh…"

"How long has this been going on?"

"About a month now."

Elizabeta about dropped her phone. "A month?! And you haven't done anything to fix it?!"

"How would  _you_  fix the problem?" Gilbert asked. "I've tried to stop him from investigating this family who lived before World War II began, but he won't listen. I even tried the folder he got from the Genealogy place, but he already made copies." The Hungarian woman rubbed her forehead.

"You don't think it could be related to her somehow, do you?" she asked.

"Well…" the Prussian man said.

"Gilbert!"

"I know, I know!" He sighed over the other line. "But, it doesn't make sense. It shouldn't be happening so soon."

"Oh god. Don't tell me…"

"Now, now. We don't know if that's the case yet. It's all too early to tell."

"Damn it, Gilbert, this isn't the time to be uncertain! Do you understand the gravity of the situation?! If the dead have indeed come back, we are in deeper shit than we believed! Don't tell me it's too early to tell!" Elizabeta panted as she leaned against the wall.

"Okay, I understand," the Prussian man said in a low voice. "I will try to look into it." The Hungarian woman put her hand to her forehead.

"Thank you," she said. Suddenly, Elizabeta paused. "I have to go there. I think there's someone at the door."

"Elizabeta?" Gilbert asked on the other line. The Hungarian hung up the phone and wandered over to the door.

-Roderich-

He picked up on the problem on a Monday.

Roderich came home from the concert hall in the early hours of the morning and found Elizabeta lying on the living room in a daze. He raced over to her and scooped her into his arms.

"Elizabeta?!" the Austrian man shouted. "Elizabeta?! Elizabeta?!" Roderich about jumped when he found her cold to the touch. He could see himself in her empty eyes. The Austrian man put his fingers on her neck. His girlfriend shook as she came to.

"Mr. Roderich?" Elizabeta asked. The man put his hand to his chest.

"Elizabeta," he said with relief. "What are you doing on the floor? Are you alright? What happened to you?" The Hungarian woman looked around.

"I… I don't know," she muttered. "I must have fallen asleep or something." Elizabeta paused as she slowly remembered what led up to this point.

"I think I'm going to be sick," she whispered.

"Here, let's get you up," Roderich said. He helped his girlfriend to her feet and walked her into the kitchen. Elizabeta ended up stumbling over a bit as they walked.

* * *

"Here, drink this," Roderich said, handing Elizabeta a warm cup of tea. She nodded and took a drink. Her boyfriend sat down in front of her.

"Better?" he asked. Elizabeta nodded again.

"Now, tell me what happened," he said. "Take your time if you need to." His girlfriend looked down into her cup.

"Ludwig is seeing a ghost," she whispered. All of the color drained from the Austrian's man face.

"That can't be," he muttered.

"I wish I was." Her hands began to tremble. Roderich put his hand on her shoulder. Elizabeta looked up at him with wide eyes.

"I'm starting to see them too," she said.

"What did you say?" he asked. Elizabeta grabbed onto his arms and rested her head against his chest.

"I was on the phone with Gilbert when I heard someone at the door," she said. "But when I opened it, there was nobody there." Her mind replayed those five minutes before she was attacked. Her whole body broke down, trembling.

"Stay away," she murmured. "Stay away! Stay away!" Roderich held her as tightly as he could. How bad could what his girlfriend has seen to scare her like this? He lifted her head. Tears were forming in her eyes.

"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to right now," the Austrian man said in a hushed voice. Elizabeta shook her head.

"No?" her boyfriend asked. "You don't have to…" The Hungarian woman grabbed onto his jacket as tightly as she could.

"No!" she shouted. "Listen!" Roderich shifted uneasily. He didn't want to her hurt her by making her relive whatever put her on the floor in a cold daze. But, she was determined to say it. Besides knowing her, she was probably strong enough to speak to stop the coming End of Days. It had to be that important for her to risk her sanity.

Roderich dropped his shoulders.

"Alright, what did you say?" he asked. Elizabeta had to force herself to tell the story of the guest that came to their door hours earlier. The more she spoke, the more sharp pain ripped through her body. She grasped her head, but she wouldn't let herself stop talking. By the time, the Hungarian woman was finished, blood ran from her nose, but she felt better.

Roderich backed away, horrified. The color drained from his face.

"I think I should clean my face," his girlfriend said. The Austrian man nodded as Elizabeta turned and walked to the hall bathroom. Roderich's heart pounded in his chest.

_Don't tell me that we're running out time…_

-Gilbert-

He doesn't know how to stop his younger brother.

Why did it have to be Germany who witnessed the first sign? Gilbert expected it to be Alfred who felt the effects first. But he wasn't prepared for if Ludwig ended up being the one. That phone call with Elizabeta confirmed his fears.

He tried to stop it again on a Tuesday.

Gilbert knocked on Ludwig's office door.

"Come in," the German man said. The Prussian man slowly opened the door and poked his head inside. His younger brother sat at his desk once again with his back to him.

"Yes, what is it?" he asked. Gilbert took slow, small steps towards Ludwig.

"Listen, some mysteries are better left staying unsolved," he said.

"Why do you say that?" his brother asked.

"I mean… what if you didn't really want to know the answer you were looking for. You could be disappointed or disturbed by what you find out."

"This is true."

"Like, what if you find out something about this Harel family that will end up haunting you forever."

"I don't think that is possible."

"You don't know that."

Ludwig turned around from his desk. His eyes looked hollowed and dead. His brother didn't even think that he had any sleep at all. Gilbert found himself slowly backing away. It was bad enough when the German man was talking to thin air, but this could lead down a path that he didn't want to imagine.

"Listen," the Prussian man said. "You're just tired. Go to bed and I will clean up everything on your desk." Ludwig shook his head.

"I have to find out why she wants to go to 6972 Polanów so badly even though it doesn't exist anymore," he said.

"It could be just one big prank being pulled on you by America or the other Allies," Gilbert said with a shaking voice.

"She still wants to go there even though there's nothing there anymore," his brother said. "And what does the Harel family have to do with her? It doesn't make any sense." Ludwig turned back to his desk and buried himself back into those files that kept piling up. Trembling, Gilbert turned and ran out of the room.

_This is worse than I thought._

He pulled out his cell phone and dialed up a desperate number. "Antonio, we might have to turn to  _that_  measure after all! Get Yao and Heracles right now! I'll explain everything when I get to your place!" Gilbert hung up and grabbed his summer cloak.

-Feliciano-

He can't understand the dire gravity of what's coming for the world, but he knows that something is wrong with his dear friend. His fears were justified on a Wednesday.

"Germany, why do you keep talking to invisible people?" he asked Ludwig while out at lunch at a Southern Italian restaurant. The German looked up at him.

"What are you talking about?" he asked. Feliciano's hand shook as he held his fork.

"Everyone keeps saying that you keep talking to yourself around your house," he said in a quiet voice. Ludwig blinked before something clicked in his head.

"I'm not talking to myself," he said. "There is this strange woman in a red coat who keeps following me around. I don't know what she wants, but she keeps going to this address." Ludwig reached into his coat pocket and pulled out the crumbled-up piece of paper. Feliciano leaned down and tried to read it.

"I don't know what that says," he said.

"It's an address," the German man said.

"To where?"

"Nowhere. I've checked it out myself."

"But why does she want to go there?"

"She won't tell me." The more Ludwig spoke, the more Feliciano's skin crawled.

"How does this bella know you?" he asked.

"I don't," his friend said. "She just showed up last month and she won't leave me alone."

"That's really scary."

"I looked up the address she gave me before the war and a family called the Harels used to live in that place. They disappeared appeared in the early years of World War II. The youngest daughter kind of looks like that woman that keeps following me around."

Feliciano looked like he was going to faint. "You don't think she's…"

Ludwig shook his head. "Don't be silly. It's probably just her granddaughter or something looking for her family like I am." His younger Italian stared at him with eyes wide open and looking like he wanted to run away.

Maybe the older countries were right, Ludwig sounded like he was going crazy.

_Ludwig…_

-Lydia Harel-

Who was Lydia Harel?

She was the youngest girl in her family. Lydia H. lived with her parents and younger brother. Her older sisters had already moved out years earlier. The oldest was set to marry a nice boy from the neighborhood and lived next door to him. The middle sister was a widowed schoolteacher who lived with her in-laws. Lydia H.'s parents owned a bakery. Her father handled the books and cash register while her mother made her famous breads and cakes. Sometimes, Lydia H. and her little brother would help out after school.

Things were going great for the Harel family until Adolf Hitler rose to power in 1939.

There is no record of what happened to the Harel family. There wasn't even any rumors or whispers of them anymore.

Or, are people not looking hard enough?

-Ludwig II-

The next time Ludwig saw the woman in the red coat again, he called her by the one name that kept reoccurring in his files and his mind.

"Lydia…"

The woman turned to him with her wide, frightened eyes.


	5. Reproduce, Tips, and Friends

Match Five: Reproduce, Tips, and Friends:

-Ju-

So, yes. Yao and I decided to try for a baby.

Our nights have been busy and I stopped taking my birth control. Yao kept to his mouth that he would support my decision.

"Are you sure you want a child?" he asked a few nights ago. I looked at him from my desk.

"Yes," I said. "And yes, I have thought about this."

"I understand," Yao said. Since then, we have been trying. Now, I like sex. I have liked sex since I was a teenager. My Western friends are the reason for my sex positivity. But when you throw in babies, sex kind of becomes off-putting. I figured the best way to go about this is to have fun with it. I started off with cute underwear. Yao enjoyed my little fashion shows. I decided to go with pink with a strawberry print. My husband sat up, smiling.

"You like?" I asked, turning around.

"It's… rather… provocative," Yao said, clearing his throat. I gave him a little pout.

"Oh come on, honey," I said. "You've seen all of my lingerie." I crawled over onto the bed. My face came within inches of his.

"You. Don't. Have. To. Be. Shy," I said. To me, it sounded fake. Was I trying too hard? Nah, I thought I was doing fine. Yao grabbed onto my ass and pulled me beside him.

"I'm not shy," he said. "Just intrigued." He kissed me on the lips. I threw my arms around his neck. Every night, we try to keep it interesting and not think about babies. That was my only rule for doing this.

"It's going to turn me off," I said. "We both have to be in the right mood for this to work." My husband tries to appease me with this plan. Sometimes, I let him suggest sexy things to do.

"If you would like to tie me down to the bed again, I would enjoy that," I offered one night. It took all of his self-control not to grab me, push me down onto the table, and do me right then and there. He does seem to be making this as enjoyable as possible. The main key to remember is being patient. I had learned to deal with it through distracting myself. Behind my senior year of college, business work with the clan, and my uncle and Junjie, I have found many chances to try and not think about if I'm pregnant or not. The only thing I have to focus on is getting help and trying for that first born with my husband.

However, we are taking this reproduction process really seriously too. During the day, Yao goes out and buys parenting books. The clan has taken to giving me tips to help. This week alone, the parents kept giving Yao and I different foods and advice for a healthy baby.

Let me give you a run through of everyone through the week.

On Monday, Bik came by to see me. I had just gotten up when the doorbell rang through the house. I hadn't even opened my eyes yet.

"Wha?" I asked. "Babe, who is that?" Yao was still sound asleep beside me. The doorbell ripped through the air again.

"Coming!" I shouted. I threw on and robe and hurried down the stairs. When I opened the door, Bik stood in front of me, grinning.

"Good morning!" she said in the type of perky voice that would make you want to punch something for waking you up this early in the morning.

"Huh?" I asked. Bik leaned in closer to my face. I about fell stumbling backwards.

"Gah!" I shouted. She smiled and tried not to laugh.

"How are you this morning?" she asked. I rubbed the back of my head.

"I just woke up," I mumbled. "What are you doing here so early this morning?" Bik looked around for a bit. She tried to lean into my ear again.

"You and Yao start… you know?" she asked. I raised my eyebrow as I made a face at her.

"What?" I asked.

"You know… started with making babies?" Bik asked. If I wasn't fully awake before, I was surely awake now.

"The hell?!" I shouted. She tried to shush me as she waved her hands up and down in the air.

"Shhh, not so loud," she said. My face felt so hot. I thought I was going to pass out. I mean, I know that Bik's nurse and she's comfortable with talking about things like periods, bodily functions, illnesses, and things like that. But this lady was the one who changed my diaper when I was a baby. It just feels too awkward! She just had to go and make it worse.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"No," I whimpered.

"Do you need to sit down?"

"No." Before I knew, Bik grabbed me by the arm and dragged me into my own house.

* * *

By the time I was sitting in a chair, my nerves had calmed back down. I buried my head in my hands as I shook my head. Darn it, she got me this early! My train of thought halted when I heard "vitamins".

"What?" I asked as I lifted my head.

"Are you taking any vitamins?" Bik asked.

"Why?" I asked.

"You will need them if you are trying to get pregnant," she said. "I can give you a list of everything that you will need to take every day."

"Oh, you don't have to," I began to say.

"No, you have to have these!" dear Bik cut in. "Here, I'm going to write down everything you need and I am taking you shopping for it!" I threw back my head and groaned.

"You can groan at me all you want, but this is important if you and Yao are going to have a healthy baby! You cannot skip steps here! Listen closely and get yourself a check-up," she said in a sharp tone. "Do you understand me?" I gave her a long, blank stare.

"Do you understand me?" Bik asked again.

"Yes," I groaned.

"Good," she said. "Now go and get dressed." I opened my mouth, but she grabbed me by the arm.

"Go and get dressed," Bik repeated. She clapped her hands and stomped her foot.

"Okay, okay," I said. "Geez." I walked up the stairs, mumbling to myself.

"I'm sorry?" Bik asked.

"Nothing!" I said aloud. Most of my morning ended up being dragged around the local market shopping for vitamin. The whole time, I tried my best not to look like I wanted to run away. This wasn't the first time I ended up stuck with her. When I was thirteen, she pulled the same thing early in the morning with my father and me. I remembered that summer too. It was either have another day of lessons or go out shopping for herbs in her clinic. To sum up, I did not have a day.

"Uh… I think I might have a meeting today," I said.

"You'll be back in time," she said. Bik had her back turned to me too. I twenty-two years old now and not a kid anymore. I could just walk away and get home. I looked around for any possible exits. How long would it be before she realized I was gone? I could make it quick too…

"Ready to go?" Bik asked when she turned around.

"Huh?" I asked. Before I knew it, we were out of there. By the time I made it home, I collapsed in the front doorway. Yao looked down at me with a confused look on his face.

"You alright?" he asked.

"No," I complained.

"What is all of this?"

"Vitamins."

"Vitamins?"

"Yes!" That was just day one.

* * *

On Tuesday, Cai came by to see me. I was making lunch for Yao and me for the day when the doorbell rang. To be honest, I hoped that it wasn't Bik again asking if I was taking my vitamins. (The woman already called me twice. I don't need her coming by my house to ask questions too.)

"Hold on!" I shouted. I lowered the heat on the stove and raced to the door. I relaxed when I saw who my guest was.

"Oh, Cai," I said. "It's you." Cai tilted her head, blinking.

"Were you expecting someone else?" she asked. I waved her off as I shook my head.

"Never mind," I said. "Come on in. What brings you by?" Cai followed me into the house. She closed the door behind us.

"Have you been to a doctor yet?" Cai asked. I turned around with a blank stare.

"E-Excuse me?" I asked. She looked down at her feet as she shuffled them.

"I suffered from two miscarriages as you know," Cai said. "Sometimes, I wished that I had my body checked out before I had gotten pregnant the first time."

"Cai…" I said in a low voice. She lifted her head and grabbed me by the hands. I raised my eyebrow as I looked into her eyes.

"Are you… crying?" I asked.

"Promise the you will see a doctor before you end up pregnant," Cai pleaded.

"Cai…"

"Promise me!"

I dropped my shoulders, but couldn't get out of her grasp. "Alright."

"Please do it as soon as possible?"

"Yes."

"Don't take this lately! Go to the doctor today and get yourself examined. You can't take this lightly."

"Oaky, okay! I promise!"

Cai bowed her head. "Thank you." I didn't know whether to laugh or run away.

"Uh… Cai?" I asked.

"What?" she asked.

"Could you please let go of me?" I asked. "I was in the middle of cooking and I don't want to burn our lunches."

"Oh, I'm so sorry about that," she said. Cai let good of my hands and I raced back to the kitchen. I didn't even try to make eye contact with her for the rest of the day. I'm willing to bet that Bik had a hand in sending her over here. I wouldn't put it past her.

Oh, but wait! There are still three more mothers in the clan.

* * *

On Wednesday, Wan came by to see me. Oh, but she wasn't alone either. She brought Chi Ju with her. Yao and I hadn't planned on during much that evening. We were just reading in the living room when we heard the doorbell ring. I lowered my book and groaned.

"Is it them again?" Yao asked. I gave him a strange look for the way he said it.

"Let me guess, Hen-to and Fei have been talking to you too?" I asked. The uncomfortable sheepish look on Yao's face told me everything I needed to know.

"Right…" I said. Against my better judgement, I got up and went to the door. A blank expression came over my face.

"Wan… Chi Ju… What are you doing over this late?" I asked.

"Oh, is this a bad time?" Wan asked.

_Yes._  "Why, no," I ended up saying instead. "What brings you by?"

"We just wanted to talk!" she said. I looked over at Chi Ju standing next to her. Judging by the expression on his face, he would much rather be back home doing anything else other than this. I could feel his pain. Wan started to push past me and looked into my house.

"Is Yao in?" she asked.

"Why?" I asked. She pushed past me and went inside just as I had gotten that question out of my mouth. I turned to Chi Ju. He shrugged and followed his wife into the house. I threw back my head and groaned as I closed the door behind me. As expected, they talked our ears off. Wan focused on me while Chi Ju pulled Yao aside and spoke with him. Why did I say no? What the hell was I thinking? I kept looking over at my husband who was trying to be so polite by smiling and nodding. I could tell that he really wanted to run away.

" _Want to try and escape?_ " I asked him with my eyes.

" _But how?_ " he asked.

" _I don't know. Try anything!_ " I clapped my hands together.

"Thanks for the advice," I was quick to say.

"But it's getting late!" Yao added. "I think we might try and start on making a baby now." Wan's eyes lit up.

"Oh, that's great!" she said. "Good luck. Maybe she or he won't turn out to be so useless like Mei." Yao and I had to about push Wan and Chi Ju out of the house. We leaned against the door, panting. Yao turned to me.

"Don't open the door that late again, okay?" he asked. I sank to my knees as I nodded. Oh, but there are still two more days and mothers to go, people!

* * *

On Thursday, I went out with Hark to pick up materials for Szu's senior year project. By this time, I was on my guard. I expected Hark to open her mouth and give me more advice on getting pregnant. In fact, I counted down to it.  _Come on, let's just get it over with. I know you're itching to say it._

"You know, stress isn't helpful for the mother and baby," Hark finally came out with in the paper section. I froze, but didn't turn around.

"That's kind of ironic," I mumbled under my breath.

"I'm sorry?" she asked. I turned around with a smile on my face.

"Nothing," I lied.

"Whenever you can, try and relax a little more," Hark added. "That includes taking a little bit of time off from work."

"Okay…"

"I don't mean just you either. You and Yao have to take time off from running the clan. Let Hen-to and Fei run things for a little while."

"But what about my uncle?"

She shivered for a bit, but tried to keep it together. "They will handle him when the time comes." I can't blame for how she is right now. Hark has to call and make sure Szu is already from time to time and she didn't try to choke me out with advice. I guess I could let it slide for now.

Oh, but I still have one more day and one more mother to deal with.

* * *

On Friday, I stopped by the Man house. This time, I figured I would go to the source and get this over with. But when I rang the bell, I was not prepared for what I was going to see next.

"Coming!" a chipper voice said on the other side. I counted down for what she was going to say.  _Just listen, smile, nod, and get the hell out of there._  My jaw dropped when she opened the door. Tse stood inches away from me with her arms filled with big bags.

"Oh, Ju!" she said. "You're just the person I wanted to see." I blinked and stepped backwards.

"Uh… what is this?" I asked. Tse smiled like Bik when she wants something.

"I was out shopping for dinner yesterday and walked past a maternity shop," she explained. "I couldn't help but to think of you. And before I knew it, I walked inside. The clerk thought I was the one having the baby. I was flattered, but said it was for my boss." She handed me the bags. I about fell on the ground.

"Why are these so heavy?" I asked.

"They are full of parenting books," Tse said. I made a face when I looked up.

"Parenting books?!" I asked.

"Uh-huh! I figured the others gave you more advice already, but it wouldn't hurt to have a little more, now would it? Would you like to come in? I have more books for you if you like."

"No thank you!" I had to waddle away with the bags in my arms.

"Okay, well the books will be waiting for you in my house!" Tse shouted. "Feel free to come and pick them up whenever!"

"Right!" I said back. I didn't go back out for the rest of the day.

* * *

Lucky for me, I still have my friends to help me through this baby insanity. I talked to Tina about my week on Saturday. She smiled and listened to me out of sympathy. When I was finished, I was panting. She patted me on the back.

"There, there," Tina said. "Look on the bright side." I looked up at with a tired look in my eyes.

"What bright side?" I asked.

"The sooner you get pregnant, the sooner they will all leave you alone," she said. My right eye started twitching.

"That's easy for you say!" I hissed. "You're not running a clan or even married." Tina tried not to laugh at my misery.


	6. Chapter 6

Match Six: Centaur:

Gilbert was the one who called for "that" measure. The other countries didn't have time to argue about this.

"Is it really that bad?" Antonio asked on the other line when the Prussian man called him up.

"Yes!" Gilbert shouted. "West is to feel the effects!" The color drained from the Spanish man's face.

"You can't mean…?" he began to ask.

"Yes! Since we don't have Greece's mother, we have to get Greece to do it himself!"

"But can he do it?"

"He's going to have to learn how or else we're all screwed!"

"Okay, I'll get Turkey to talk to him."

"Thank you!"

* * *

On Sunday, Sadık pounded on Heracles' door.

"Yo, Greek bastard! Get out here this instant!" he shouted. "This is serious!" He beat on the wood until the door opened. The Greek man stared at him with narrowed eyes.

"What do you want?" he asked. Sadık folded his arms across his chest and snorted.

"Antonio sent me over here to talk to you about it," he said.

"About what?" Heracles asked. The Turkish man threw up his hands in the air.

"You know…  _that_  measure!"

Heracles' jaw dropped. He slowly shook his head. "No…"

"Gilbert was the one who said it."

"But it took mother days to summon and master the Great Beast. Even then, it wore her out. She slept for close to a year after the Woman in Red was sealed away into the Land of the Dead. Even I don't have enough strength to do it all again. If I tried to summon the Great Beast, it would kill me."

"So?! We will all die if you don't do something! I wouldn't be over here if Kiku wasn't getting worse!" Sadık noted the Greek's man shocked expression on his face.

"Yeah, that's right," he said. "Sena wouldn't let me see him today. But I did find him in the back yard. Kiku's in real bad shape. He didn't look like he had been eating or sleeping for weeks. I don't like you, but please at least do it for Kiku!"

Heracles' stomach dropped. His mother was right in that Yao shouldn't have locked the Woman in Red in his territory. Now, his dear friend was paying the price as she was escaping into the living world again. The Turkish man gritted his teeth as he tapped his foot.

"So what's it going to be, Heracles?" he asked. The Greek man lowered his head.

"Give me five days to get started," he said at last.

"Five days?!" Sadık shouted. "Are you kidding me?!"

"You want me to save Kiku, yes?" Heracles asked. The Turkish man puffed up his cheeks and frowned.

"Yes," he groaned.

"Then five days for me to learn how to summon the Great Beast," the Greek man said. "No less."

"But why so long?"

"It took my mother years to learn the summoning spell. I will try to the learn that exact one in a short amount of time. But I have to have no distractions or interferes. Do you understand me?"

"I'll leave you to it."

"Thank you." Heracles closed the door behind him.

* * *

-300 Years Ago-

His mother's door remained closed. Day after day, a young Heracles waited and wondered if she would be okay. At times, Ancient Rome would have to chase him away and get him to live like a normal child.

"It is not good for a little boy like yourself to sit around, worrying," he said.

"But…" Little Heracles said. Ancient Rome smiled and patted him on the head.

"Your mother is going to be fine," he insisted. "In fact…" he reached into his leather pouch that he had on his hip and pulled out a small silver key.

"You can help her by keeping this safe," the Roman man said. The little boy looked at him with big eyes.

"What is it?" he asked.

"It's something very precious to your mother," Ancient Rome said. "Keep it with at all times and you will make your mother very happy."

-Present Day-

Heracles got Cyprus to help him over the next five days. His adopted brother looked at him uneasy at first.

"Are you really going to summon the Great Beast?" he asked. "You couldn't die if something goes wrong."

"I have to do it or else we will all die because of her," Heracles said. "And I'm going to need you to help."

"What do you need me to do?"

"Keep me awake. I need to study the spells for five days."

Cyprus backed up with his jaw to the floor. "Five days?! Can your body even handle that?!"

"That's why I have you here with me. You have to make sure I don't fall asleep and keep me focused. Can you do that?"

"Uh… well…"

"Can you do that?!"

Cyprus jumped into standing up straight. "Yes, I can!"

"Good," Heracles said. "Follow me to the shed." His younger adopted brother gave him an odd look.

"Why?" he asked.

"Mother has her books locked inside," the Greek man said. He reached under his shirt and pulled out the small silver key.

"And I believe Rome gave me the key to help us stop the Woman in Red this rime," Heracles said.

* * *

Five days later, Sadık returned. He knocked on the door.

"That bastard better have come up with something good," he muttered under his breath. "I will kill him if he doesn't!" But when the door opened, the Turkish man covered his mouth, gasping.

"What the-?!" he asked. Heracles' eyes looked so hollow and dead. The bags under his eyes looked like bagged up-weights. His rival had never seen such red eyes before. Heracles could barely stand up by the way he held onto the doorframe. The Greek man looked up at Sadık.

"Oh, it's you," he said. That poor man sounded so dead inside.

"Are you okay?" Sadık asked. "Do you have it ready?"

"Yes," Heracles said. Th Greek collapsed, his grip slipping from the doorframe.

"Heracles?" the Turkish man asked. "Heracles?"

* * *

Several hours went by. Sadık sat with Heracles as he slept on the couch. The Turkish man turned to Cyprus who walked into the living room.

"He stayed up for five days and nights," the younger man said. "No breaks and he wouldn't eat or drink anything. I had to hit him on the back and shoulders to keep him awake during his studies." Sadık covered his agape mouth.

"You're kidding," he said. Cyprus shook his head.

"He had to have all of his focus for this spell to work," he said. "Mother went through the same thing when she summoned the Great Beast." Sadık turned to Heracles out cold on the couch.

"Is… he going to be okay?" he asked.

"Oh yes," the younger man said. "He just needs plenty of sleep. I do have a favor to ask of you, though."

"What?" Sadık asked.

"Please stay by his side, at least he wakes up," Cyprus pleaded. Until normal circumstances, the Turkish man would all but laugh at such a request. Instead, he snorted.

"Fine, whatever," he muttered.

"Thank you," the younger man said. Sadık rolled his eyes.

"I'm only doing this for Kiku," he muttered under his breath.

* * *

The next night, Heracles slowly opened his eyes and lifted his head. Sadık put up his hand in a wave.

"Yo," he said in a low voice. The Greek man blinked at first.

"Huh?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"

"Cyprus asked me to stay by you while you slept," Sadık muttered. Heracles gave him a puzzled look.

"What?" the Turkish man snapped.

"How long was I out?" the Greek man asked.

"A day."

"And you sat there, watching over me?"

Sadık snorted and looked away. "Not by choice! You better now?"

"Yeah." Heracles sat up on the couch. "And now I'm going to need your help with the ritual." The Turkish man's attention spiked.

"What all do you need?" he asked. The Greek man reached into his pocket.

"I managed to write down everything before you came over yesterday," he said. "This is everything that I will need for the summoning." Sadık took the folded-up piece of paper and read over it.

"I can't read this," he said.

"Cyprus will go with you," the Greek man said. "He has the same list. He wrote it down himself." In that moment, his younger brother walked into the living room.

"Oh good," Heracles said. "I was about to call you. You and Sadık have to go down to Old Lady Salome's shop and get everything that I need for the summoning ritual." Cyprus looked at him with big eyes.

"Why there?!" he asked. "That old lady freaks me out!"

"We have no choice," the Greek man told him. "She's the only one that has what we need."

"Can't you get the things off the internet?" Cyprus asked.

"It has to be done tonight," Heracles said. "Just before sunrise. Please don't argue with me anymore. We do not have time. If you don't want to end up dead in the Woman in Red's storm, get moving now!" Sadık put his hand onto Cyprus' shoulder and pulled him along.

"Thank you," the Greek man said as they walked out of the door. He drew in a deep breath and walked out to the back courtyard.

* * *

-Midnight-

Heracles sat on a stone bench when he heard the back door slide open. He turned to find Sadık and Cyprus holding stuffed bags in their arms.

"Did you get everything?" the Greek man asked.

"Yes!" the other two men said.

"Good, good," Heracles said. "Bring everything here." Sadık and Cyprus walked over to the Greek man.

"Stop!" he commanded them. They froze with their eyes locked on him.

"Right," Heracles said. "Hand me the candles." The men reach into the bags. Sadık had blue candles and Cyprus had the white ones. The Greek set up each candle at the different points of the circle he drew with ash and brick dust.

"The myrrh?" Heracles asked. His rival reached inside and handed him the incense sticks.

"I didn't know how many you wanted," he said.

"This is fine," the Greek man said. He set the sticks upward into ground outside of the circle. Heracles took out a red pen and started drawing ancient Greek symbols on his body. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a book of matches. Sadık and Cyprus watched as the Greek man lit up the candles and incense. Heracles stepped back from the circle.

"Cyprus, did you bring Mother's book?" he asked in a low tone.

"Yes," his younger brother said.

"Hand it to me," Heracles commanded. "The book is on the bench near the door." Cyprus turned and walked up the hill. He came back with the book to his chest. The younger man handed it over to the Greek man. Heracles opened his mother's powerful book to the summoning spell. He closed his eyes and began to chant. As he spoke, heavy winds picked up around all three men. Sadık's eyes shifted left and right under his mask.

"What's happening?" he whispered.

"Shhh!" Cyprus whispered back. Heracles found himself sinking deeper into the spell as he chanted. The flames of the candles heightened despite the heavy winds. His whole body became still as his eyes ripped open. Heracles opened his mouth, but no sound came out.

"Heracles?" Sadık asked. The Greek man collapsed back and his body began trembling as if having a seizure.

"Heracles!" Sadık shouted. He rushed forward, but Cyprus pushed him back.

"Don't!" he said.

"But…"

"If you break his focus now, his soul could end up in the Underworld."

"So what can we do?"

"Wait it out. The spell is almost over." Both men looked down at the trembling man on the ground. By three in morning, Heracles sat up from his trance. He turned to see Sadık, frowning with his arms folded across his chest. The Greek man tilted his head.

"What happened?" he asked.

"Nothing, you bastard!" the Turkish man snapped. Heracles turned to the empty circle. He shook his head as his jaw dropped.

"No…" he murmured. "That can't be right. I did everything Mother had in her book just the way it was written!"

"Did you translate something wrong?" Sadık asked. "Did you?!"

"Of course not!" the Greek man yelled. "I can read my Mother's language just fine!"

"Well then, try it again!" the Turkish man yelled. "Keep trying until you get it!" Heracles had just opened his mouth when the men heard a low groaning noise. They turned to see a man with a long brown ponytail standing in the middle of the circle, rubbing his forehead. Wait, back up. More accurately, from the head to the torso was human, but the rest of his body was a horse's torso, legs, and tail. His coat matched his long hair. Heracles stood up with his jaw dropped to the ground.

"That was a bad trip," the horse man muttered to himself. Sensing that someone was watching him, he lifted his head and spotted Heracles and Sadık staring at him with big eyes. The horse man narrowed his eyes.

"Okay, which one of you summoned me?" he asked. He looked at the Turkish man before turning his attention to the Greek one.

"It was you, wasn't it?" he asked.

"Yes!" Heracles said in one breath. The horse man stepped forward and leaned in close, studying the Greek man's face.

"You look familiar," he said. "Have I seen you from somewhere before?"

"My Mother summoned you before to defeat the Woman in Red thousands of years ago," the Greek man said. "It was a nightmarish time for us all." The horse man, or rather, centaur, backed up, covering his mouth.

"You mean Ancient Greece?" he asked. "You're her son?! You're that little kid who hid behind her toga as she commanded in the final battle?!  _That_  Ancient Greece?!"

"Yes," Heracles said.

"Wow," the centaur mouthed. "I didn't think her son would try and summon me with a complex ritual. And judging by that, that means  _she's_  back, isn't she?"

"Yes!" Heracles and Sadık shouted together. The centaur rubbed his forehead again.

"Oh shit," he muttered. "Well, this is turning into quite a mess." He looked up at Heracles.

"Can you see my reigns?" the centaur asked. The Greek man looked down the Great Beast's torso.

"Barely, but yes," he said.

"That's a start," the Great Beast said. "Can you grab them?" Heracles reached out for the invisible reigns. But when his fingers got close, he drew back his hand.

"Ow!" the Greek man shouted. He sucked on his fingers.

"What's wrong?" Sadık asked.

"Too hot," Heracles said. The centaur shook his head and sighed.

"You're not quite as strong in your magic as your mother," he said. "Then again, it took her years to learn how to summon and control me."

"But can't you help us?" the Greek man asked.

"Of course!" the Great Beast said. "Since you went through the trouble. You do need to work on your training some more, though. But first, I need some mead. Care to help me out?"

"Uh… sure…" Heracles said.

"Excellent," the centaur said. He followed the men into the house.

"What's your name, by the way?" Sadık asked.

"Never really had one," the Great Beast said. "Ancient Greece gave me a name long ago, but it's lost on me now." He turned to Heracles.

"Perhaps you could give me one," the centaur offered. The Greek man tilted his head as he looked at the Great Beast.

"Hm…" he said. "We just met and I don't have anything for you yet." The centaur laughed as he smacked Heracles in the back.

"No matter!" he boomed. "I'm sure you'll come up with something all in due time!" The Great Beast walked up to the glass door and walked into the house. Sadık leaned over to Heracles.

"Well, your summoning spell worked," he whispered.

"Yes," the Greek man said. "But now I have to learn how to control him just like Mother did."


	7. Ame Onna

Match Seven: Ame Onna:

Kiku looked down at his wrists in his bathroom. He trembled at the black spots on them. Sometimes, they would swell up and turn darker. They would spread to the back of his hands gradually. The same things appeared on his feet. He tried his best to hide these spots on his hands and feet. But how long would that last? Where would the next spots appear on his body?

"Why so ashamed of them?" a voice asked. Kiku froze as he looked in the mirror. She stood inches away from him. Each time he saw her, she looked more human. She smirked at him like a cat as she put her arms around his shoulders.

"Three more to go," she murmured in his ear. He can't feel her around his body. But she makes his skin crawl.

"You already know the answer to the question that you're going to ask," she said.

"Please…" he pleaded.

"You know how this works."

Kiku lowered his arm. He could feel his wrists and feet starting to ache. The nightmares that plagued him every night weren't enough anymore. She started to appear everywhere more and more often in the daytime. Tonight, she pouted.

"Why won't you acknowledge me like you used to?" she asked. The Japanese man closed his eyes.

"I just want to go back to when things were peaceful," he pleaded. She looked at him like a sweet little child begging for candy.

"Aw, Kiku, you know that isn't possible," she said. "Everything will come to an end. The marks on your hands and feet are proof of this." Kiku tried to hide his hands in his sleeves. Sena was the first one to spot them when the first one appeared on his left hand during Ivan and Li Ying's wedding.

"What is that?" she asked. Her husband tried to hide his hand.

"Nothing," he tried to lie.

"Did you have an allergic reaction to something?" Sena asked.

"No!" Kiku paused and shifted his eyes back and forth. "I mean, I don't think so. Maybe it will go away by tomorrow." He walked back to their bedroom before she could ask any more questions.

"Honey?" she asked. Unfortunately for him, the spot on his left wrist didn't go away. In fact, it started to swell. Sena sat up next to him and looked at his hand.

"Ew, that's not good," she said. Kiku tried to hide his hand. He started to open his mouth, but Sena covered it.

"No, we're going to a doctor," she said. "I don't want to hear it." The younger woman stared him down, daring him to argue back. Her husband dropped his shoulders and lowered his eyes. The trip to the doctor didn't produce anything. Kiku's doctor couldn't describe what he was looking at after several tests.

"Have you come in contact with any poisons lately?" he asked. The Japanese man lowered his eyes.

"Her," he said under his breath.

"Excuse me?" the doctor asked. His patient shook his head. In the end, Kiku was sent home with ointments and antibiotics. Part of the Japanese man wanted to laugh dryly, but he went along with this charade anyway. As predicted, they didn't work. In fact in three days' time, the spot on his left hand started to smell with the swelling. Sena had to back up and cover her nose.

"What is that?" she asked. "Is it supposed to do that?" Kiku turned away and ran to the bathroom. If one hand was bad, the second spot on his other hand made things worse. Wearing gloves in the spring made his hands itch.

She picked up his left hand and kissed it the top of it.

"This is only temporary," she reminded him. "It will all go towards the greater good." The greater good. Just another one of her lies. Yet, he doesn't dare to call her out on it.

* * *

Around three in the morning, Sena awoke to an empty side of the futon.

"Kiku-kun?" she asked. The brash young woman sat up and looked around. She noticed the light on across the hall.

"Babe?" she asked. Sena got up and walked across the hall.

* * *

That damned woman smiled in the mirror.

"Your little wife is awake," she said. She turned Kiku's face to hers. That cursed woman always took delight in seeing the terror in his eyes.

"Hey, would it be funny if she walked in and saw us right now?" she asked. The Japanese man shook his head.

"No, no, no, no!" he said. Her laughter clawed at his fragile sanity.

"Why?" she asked. "Okinawa has to know about this glorious day of reckoning approaching you and her."

"But she has nothing to do with this!"

"Oh, but she does."

"Babe?" Sena asked in the hallway. Kiku's heart pounded against his chest as her footsteps grew closer to the door.

"Don't come in here!" he cried.

"What's the matter?" his wife asked. She tried to open the door. The knob turned back and forth.

"Why is the door stuck?" Sena asked.

"Please, don't come in. Just go back to bed."

"Just let me in!"

"Okinawa, don't!" The door knob stopped turning. Kiku walked over to the door. He pressed his ear to the wood.

"Sena… -chan?" he asked.

"Fine, I won't open the door," his wife said. "But just talk to me. What's going on? It's been about four years and you've closed me off. How am I supposed to help?"

"You can't!" Kiku looked down at the backs of his hands. They were starting to swell and itch again. The smell was enough to make his nose curl.

"Just go back to bed!"

"I won't until you tell me what's wrong!"

Kiku drew his knees to his chest. He could feel that cursed woman staring at his back. She looked like she would fly away as the doorknob turned. She put her hand on Kiku's head. Meanwhile, the Japanese man tried not to scratch his hands.

"You wouldn't understand!" he shouted.

"Then help me understand!" Sena shouted back.

"No!"

His wife sighed outside. "Look, you're not giving me much to help you with. You stopped going to therapy. I have been keeping everyone else away from you, but some of them keep getting in." The vile woman wrapped her arms around her prey.

"She's right, you know," she hissed. "How long are you going to keep her at bay? She has to know the truth. The older countries already know I am coming back. Why not let Okinawa in on the truth as well?"

"Who is that in there with you, babe?" Sena asked outside. The cursed woman smirked.

"Why don't you open the door and see?" she asked. Kiku looked up with big eyes.

"What are you doing?!" he cried.

"Who are you talking to?" Okinawa asked.

"Nobody! Just go back to bed! Please, Sena-chan! Go back to bed!"

"I won't until you tell me what's going on!" his wife shouted. "Who is that in there with you?" The cursed woman rested her chin atop her prey's head.

"Well, Kiku-kun?" the vile woman in red asked. "What's it going to be?" Kiku looked like he was about to throw up. This was part of her plan, wasn't it?

"You figured it out," she said. "You are the mainland, but I have to have all parts of you and your relatives."

"Please leave my Sena-chan out of this," Kiku pleaded. "Aren't I enough for you?"

"No," she said. "But you already knew that, didn't you?"

"That's it, I'm coming in," his wife said. Sena started to open the door again. "Hold on, I just about got it to open."

"No, don't!" her husband shouted.

"It's just about… there…"

"No."

The cursed woman's lit glowed like burning coals. "Yes."

The turning of the knob stopped again and footsteps walked away from the door. The Japanese man appeared shocked. The cursed woman, on the other hand, frowned.

"Aw, that's it?" she asked. "Well that's a letdown." Kiku shook his head.

"That's not it," he said.

"Oh?" she asked. The Japanese man looked up when he heard a click in the door. She perked up as she tried to contain her enthusiasm.

"I'm coming in," Sena said.

"Stop, Okinawa!" Kiku shouted. By the time the door opened, it got worse. Sena poked her head inside and looked around. She paused when her eyes locked with the Woman in Red's.

"Good evening," the cursed woman said. Sena slowly backed up into the hall.

"Babe, who is this?" she asked. The Woman in Red let go of her prey and walked over to her new plaything.

"Nice to meet you, Honda Sena," she said. "Your husband and I are really close." Kiku frantically shook his head at his wife. He tried to speak, but no words came out.

"Kiku-kun?" Sena asked. "What is this? Is this why you have been suffering so much for close to three years now?" Her husband shut his eyes.

"Yes," he said. No sooner had he said, his whole spine went stiff. The Japanese ripped open his eyes and gasped.

"Babe, what is it?" Sena asked. Kiku turned and looked behind him. The Woman in Red stood back in the corner with a mischievous smile on her face.

"Summer's over, my dear Kiku," she said with her eyes.


	8. Brother

Match Eight: Brother:

-July 10th, 1994-

Four months after Ju was born, Bik took her then seven-year-old son, Biao, with her to her local clinic. At the time, the nurse was hard at work. Just she began her shift, she dropped him off in the local playground.

"I'll pick you up by lunch," the nurse said. "If you need me for anything, come by my office. Will you please be good?"

"Yes!" little Biao said. Bik leaned down and kissed him on the forehead.

"I'll see you at lunch," she said. "Bye-bye."

"Bye-bye," her son said back. He waved as she walked into the building. Little Biao looked around at the playground. He couldn't find many children around the tiny park. On days like this, little Biao wished that it would rain. When it rained, he could look through his mother's medical books as she filled out prescriptions and tended to youths too poor to go to a hospital in the city. He thought that he would be doing that today. But, Bik saw to that otherwise.

"It's a nice day out today," the nurse said. "You need to be outside more. Plus, you should go and make more little friends. You're too lonely with just Kee around the compound." Neither Biao or Hen-to dared to argue back with the nurse. Hen-to may be the man of the house, but Bik ran everything like a tight ship. Right now, little Biao shoved his hands into his shorts pockets and sighed. Despite it being summer, the child found himself getting bored. Kee had a cold that day and couldn't come with him. Most of his little friends went off on vacations throughout the country. Biao's dad was on a business trip with Khai and Fei and wouldn't be back until this evening.

The little boy walked over to the swing set and sat down. Maybe someone would show up and make things more interesting. Biao began to swing back and forth. Usually around ten or eleven, this playground would fill up with children his age. But lately, this summer's been rather slow. Biao sat up in the swing and tried to move higher.

That's when he spotted him.

Against the chain link fence next to the sidewalk, he saw a head of black hair. Biao jumped out of the swing and walked over for a closer look. A boy about four years old sat on the ground against the fence, staring down at his toes. The child looked like he hadn't seen a bath in days with the dirt in his hair and on his skin. He looked like he was biting on his fingers. The smaller boy froze when he heard footsteps walking towards him. He looked up to see an older boy dressed in a nice light space print t-shirt and black shorts.

"Hi!" Biao said with a big smile on his face. The smaller boy stared at him like the older kid was planning to exploit him in some fashion. Biao tilted his head.

"That doesn't look tasty," he said as he looked at the child with his hand in his mouth. "How are you going to eat lunch with no hands?" The smaller boy narrowed his eyes and turned away.

"What are you doing out here?" Biao asked. The child didn't move. The older boy got a good look at him. The dirty child's muddy white shirt hung off of one shoulder. His face told him that he wished that this little rich boy would go away. Instead, Biao sat down next to him.

"What is your name?" he asked. The smaller child didn't look up at him. Biao puffed up his cheeks.  _He doesn't talk much, does he?_  He watched as the smaller boy kept his hand in his mouth.

"You really shouldn't do that to your hand," Biao said. He reached over and took hold of the little boy's arm, but the smaller child yanked himself away. The older boy put up his hands.

"Okay, okay," he said. "I won't touch you, geez." The little boy mumbled something without moving his hand.

"What?" Biao asked. The smaller child didn't even lift his head. The older child looked up at the sky. To him, the clouds looked like fat pillows of white cotton candy floating by. They reminded him of the class trip him took before school let out for the summer. His class took a break for lunch. Biao and four other little boys lay in the grass, looking up at the sky. They would try and guess what the shapes looked like as the clouds floated by.

Today, Biao turned to the younger boy.

"Look up at the clouds," he said. The other child cut him a strange look.

"Come on," Biao said. "Just do it." The smaller boy reluctantly looked up at the sky. Biao looked up at them.

"Looking at the clouds makes me think of my friends," he said. "Sometimes, I look at them with this other boy that lives on the same compound as I do." Biao turned to the smaller boy next to him.

"Let's be friends," he said. The other little boy gave him a strange look. Biao leaned in with a smile on his face.

"You looked lonely," he said. "I'm lonely too." The other child looked at him as if he had gone crazy. Biao's smiling face made it hard to read. He rose to his feet.

"My name is Biao," the older boy said. "What's your name?" The smaller child mumbled something with his hand still in his mouth. Biao tilted his head.

"Could move your hand?" he asked. "I can't hear you." The smaller kid glared at him, but pulled his hand out of his mouth.

"Now what is your name?" Biao asked again.

"Chih," the little boy muttered. His stomach grumbled loud enough to attract attention. The smaller boy quickly turned away.

"You hungry?" Biao asked. Chih drew his knees closer to his chest. The older boy held out his hand.

"Come on," he said. "I know a great place where you can eat. It's really big and there is a nice lady there too." The little boy sat on the ground with a blank stare. It felt like he was expecting Biao to pull a prank on him or something.

"Please?" the older boy asked. "Please be my friend?" Chih stared at him before taking the other boy's hand. It took his stomach growling a second time to make up his mind.

"There you go," Biao said. "Follow me." He led his new friend across the street to his mom's clinic.

* * *

"Mama!" little Biao shouted as the boys walked into her office. "I've got a present for you!" His mother paused with the pen in her hand.

"A present?" she asked, not turning around.

"Yep!" he said. Bik chuckled to herself as she turned around. But, her face turned into shock and slightly disgust as she laid eyes upon Chih.

"What the hell?!" she shouted. Two nurses poked their heads when they heard their manager yelling.

"Is something wrong?" one of them asked. Bik and the little boys turned around.

"Uh… Nothing!" she was quick said. "It's fine. Nothing to see here. Go back to work." The nurses stared at her with confused looks on their faces. Bik laughed aloud as she waved them off.

"It's fine, really," she insisted. "Go back to work. Go on! Go on! Move it along! Now!" The nurses scattered away back to whatever they were doing. Bik turned back to the little boys.

"Honey, who is this?" she asked, trying to stay calm. Biao smiled brighter than the sun.

"Your present!" he said. Both Bik and Chih looked at him so confused.

"Why is he my present?" his mother asked.

"I don't know," the little boy said. Bik didn't know whether to laugh or scream. It was written all over her face that she was telling herself not freak out. Biao frowned.

"You don't like him?" he asked. His mother rubbed her forehead.

"It's not that," she said. "You just can't bring in random children off the streets." Biao looked at her like he was going to cry. The nurse took in slow, long breaths.

"I'm not mad," she said in a low voice. "I'm just really confused here." She rubbed her forehead and groaned.

"Did I do something…?" Biao began to ask.

"Enough!" his mother cut him off. "I just want five minutes of silence." The little boy opened his mouth, but the nurse waved him off.

"Five minutes of silence," she repeated. Biao took Chih by the arm and led him out into the hall. Bik threw back her head and sighed.

* * *

By lunchtime, Bik came out of her office. To her surprise, she found the boys sitting in the hallway.

"You sat out here waiting for me?" she asked.

"Yes," Biao said in a small voice. They froze when they heard a stomach growling. The nurse's eyes darted towards Chih.

"When was the last time you ate?" she asked. The dirty little boy shook his head. Bik tried to put on a positive attitude for the time being.

"Well, it is a nice day today," the nurse said. "We will eat near the playground. I only made lunch for two people, but I can pick up a third meal for one of the street vendors." She looked Chih up and down.

"But first, you are going to get cleaned up," she said. "I will not be taking any dirty children out in public with me. Homeless or not!" Chih looked at her with big eyes. Bik grabbed the little confused child by his arm and took him to the ladies' room. Amazing what soap, hot water, and paper towels can do. First, Bik took his clothes off and put them in the sink. The little four-year-old tried to run off at one point, but the nurse was faster than he was.

"Stop right there!" she snapped. "You are going to be cleaned up before you eat! You will not embarrass me in public!" After about ten minutes of kicking, thrashing, and biting, Chih submitted to his condition. Bik cleaned up the child and his clothes the best that she could. After drying his clothes under the dryer to the best of her ability, she leaned against the wall and sighed.

"That will have to do for now," she said. After getting a pissed off Chih dressed, the nurse and the boys were ready to go to lunch.

* * *

Chih chomped down on his fried rice as any homeless child would. Bik stared at him with big eyes as they sat on the bench in front of the clinic.

"He really hasn't eaten for days, has he?" she whispered to her son. The smaller child finally had something to eat, but there was still a number of issues to sort out.

"So, um, what is your name?" Bik asked the smaller boy. Chih paused with the bowl to his face. The nurse looked like a gentle angel this time.

"May I ask what your name is?" she asked again.

"Chih," the little boy said.

"I see," Bik said. "My name is Nurse Bik and you already met my son Biao." Chih looked at her unsure where this was going.

"So tell me," the nurse said. "Where are your parents?"

"I don't have any," the boy said. Bik gave him a blank stare.

"What?" she asked. "Do you even know who they are?" Chih his gaze and frowned.

"No," he muttered. Bik struggled to think of the next course of action.

"Okay then…" she said. "Uh… Wo…" Biao turned to his mother.

"Can we keep him?" he asked. Bik and Chih looked like they had just been hit by a bus.

"Sweetheart," the nurse said.

"Please?" Biao pleaded. He looked like a sweet little angel asking for candy. Bik rubbed her forehead.

"Sweetheart, you just can't pick up random children off the street and take them home with you," she said.

"Please?" he pleaded. "He has no family. He's my friend!" The older little boy looked like he was going to cry at this point. Bik sighed and dropped her shoulders.

"Fine," she said. "But only for tonight. After that, we will decide what to do with him next."

"Yay!" Biao cheered as he rushed forward and hugged his mother. Meanwhile, Chih glared at the older boy. He believed he knew where this plan was going.

* * *

After that first night, Chih ended up staying at the Chang house. In the beginning, the four-year-old was a moody and unruly brat. He wouldn't eat or play with Biao or Kee. Hen-to and Bik couldn't figure it out at first.

"Do you think he was abused?" Hen-to asked.

"Maybe he's not used to structure in his life," his wife replied. Despite this, they didn't call the police and have him sent to an orphanage. Biao wouldn't have it. The seven-year-old would look all sad and break down crying.

"No! Don't send away my little brother!" he pleaded. The parents knew that the child was supposed to listen and obey, but Biao did have a point. It would just be cruel to kick out a little four-year-old boy back out on the streets. Still, they had another problem to deal with.

"What do we do if people start asking questions?" Bik asked Hen-to around the twentieth of July. Her husband sat on the living room couch and shrugged.

"We'll just say that a relative got sick and left him in our care," he suggested. "I don't know. Something like that."

"But how long would that last?" the nurse asked.

"I don't know," Hen-to said. "You're the ones who brought him here."

"It was Biao's idea," the nurse complained. "He said that Chih was a present." Hen-to smacked his lap.

"Okay then," he said. "We'll just have to adopt him." Bik spat out her green tea.

"You can't be serious!" she yelped with wide eyes.

"Hey," Hen-to said. "The kid already lives here now. Biao really likes him and with the right amount of love and discipline, Chih could turn out to be a really sweet kid."

"But how would we even pull that off?" Bik asked. "Adoption in this country is a nightmare. They might even see through our lie and take Chih away. They won't be thrilled with a seven-year-old picking up a random child off of the street."

"Baby," her husband said. "We can talk to Khai to help us out."

"But would that even work?" the nurse asked.

"We will have to try," Hen-to said. Khai ended up pulling a few strings for his advisor and his nurse wife to keep Chih. Surprisingly, the clan leader was on board with the plan. Hen-to's jaw hit the ground.

"You really mean it?" he asked.

"Yes," Khai said. "He's going to grow up to be a fine young man. You and Bik have been taking good of him. Biao and Kee now have a new brother as well." Bik and Hen-to bowed.

"Thank you, sir!" they shouted.

Over time, Chih's rotten attitude soften and he grew to love his new family. Biao was one of the first people to never give up on him.

-Present Day-

"Hey, Chih," Biao said.

"Yeah?" Chih asked.

"When bar exam?" the medical asked. The law student did a quick count in his head.

"In about a couple of weeks," he said. "Why do you ask?"

"Good luck," Biao said.

"Thanks," Chih said. Both young men headed out the door to their respective universities.


	9. Confessional

Match Nine: Confessional:

Italy was like a child. He could sense that something was wrong, but didn't know exactly what. Nobody wanted to come out and say it. Their smiles looked so painful. His friends distanced themselves for different reasons. Ludwig still was doing his research in the Harel while Kiku locked himself in his house. He still had dream of Lovino killing him after saying that he was too pure for this world. With nowhere else to turn, Feliciano headed to the one point that he knew where he could pour his heart out when he couldn't reach out to anyone else.

Feliciano walked up to his local church. Despite it being close to midnight, he needed somebody to talk to. The Italian man crossed himself before walking into the church. He made his way into the confessional booth.

"Forgive me, father, but I need somebody to talk to," Feliciano said.

"You again?" a man's voice asked on the other side of the booth.

"Please, father, I don't have anywhere else to go," the Italian man said. "Everyone keeps acting strange and nobody wants to tell me anything. I know it's late, but I don't have anyone else to talk to."

"What about your brother?"

Feliciano looked down at his hands in his lap. "He's part of my problems."

"What about Ludwig or Kiku?"

"They're part of my problem too. Please can you listen to me? I don't know what else to do."

The man on the other side groaned. "Fine, I will hear you out. When was your last confession?"

The Italian did quick count on his fingers. "Three months ago, I think. I don't remember."

"What is on your mind tonight?"

Feliciano took in a deep breath. "Everyone's going crazy lately."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't exactly explain it. I have some many things to say."

"Where do you want to start?"

"Well, I think Ludwig is seeing ghosts."

"Ghosts, huh?"

"He thinks she's a real person, but Gilbert, Elizabeta, and Roderich all look worried. They keep whispering to each other. When I ask them what's wrong, they smile and say everything is fine."

"Why would your German friend be talking to a ghost?"

"I don't know. He's become obsessed with finding out with what happened to the Harel family."

"Who are they?"

"I don't remember, but they were some family that went missing during the war. Ludwig stays locked up in his house day and night. I don't think he's eating either. I talked to him about when we went out to the lunch other day, but I didn't get much out of him." He drew his knees to his chest.

"I'm too scared for him to ask any more questions," Feliciano said. "Gilbert has tried to get him to stop looking into the Harel family, but Ludwig won't stop."

"Anything else?" the other man asked. The Italian man rubbed his forehead.

"Kiku's getting worse," he said.

"Kiku… Is that your Japanese friend?"

"Yes." Feliciano lowered his hand. "I've told you everything about him, but there is something new."

"Oh?"

"I was over at his house yesterday and I saw black marks on the back of Kiku's hands. They looked swollen up and they smelled really bad. I asked him about them, but he hid his hands in his sleeves. Sena made me leave." Feliciano leaned back in his seat.

"I don't know what else to do," he said.

"What about your brother?" the priest asked.

The Italian man sighed. "I still have dreams of him killing me. He tells me that I am too pure for this world. Then he shoots me in the chest. I don't understand it! Why would he try to kill me like that?!" Feliciano's eyes welled up with tears.

"I don't want to die!" he wailed.

"Have you talked to your brother about your dreams?" the other man asked.

"Yes."

"And what did he say about them?"

"He said that he would never try to kill me."

"Do you believe him?"

Feliciano sniffled. "I want to, but I'm not so sure anymore." He buried his head in his hands. "I don't know what to do! I can't help but feel this is all my fault somehow."

"How do you mean?"

"All I did was tell Gilbert about this bella called the Woman in Red and everyone is freaking out now."

"Who is this Woman in Red?"

"I don't know. Nobody wants to tell me anything. When I ask question, they either change the subject or yell at me. I don't know what's going on here. It's making my head hurt." Feliciano felt himself starting to cry.

"I don't know what to do or what's wrong with everyone."

"Just let it all out."

Pouring one's heart out might be therapeutic and calming like a cold shower, but it would be best to know exactly who you are confessing to. Especially if it ends up feeding gasoline to a starving fire.

* * *

Arthur walked back to his flat just before midnight. Summers in his homeland were getting cold. Whether if it was really the case or just him, he couldn't tell. The Englishman knew that it would be impossible to avoid going home at this point. Her sisters would trail him if he stayed at a friend's house. In fact, that is what happened last night.

He ended up at Francis' house of all places. The Frenchman gave him some heated milk.

"Cheers, mate," Arthur whispered. He took a drink and shivered. "It doesn't taste like blood."

"Well, that's a fine thing to say!" Francis said with his arms across his chest. Arthur shook his head. The Frenchman sat down next to him.

"Britain," he said. "What's gotten into you lately? Have you been eating? You look sick. When was the last time you went to the doctor?" The Frenchman reached forward to touch his forehead.

"Don't touch me!" Arthur shouted in a hoarse voice. He trembled as Francis drew back his hand.

"Please," the Englishman whispered.

"Have you been sleeping well?" the Frenchman asked. Arthur shook his head. His stomach turned as he realized they weren't alone. He wasn't sure which sister was watching him tonight, but he could feel her eyes on his spine. The Englishman held his cup as tight as he could.

"Francis," he mumbled.

"Yeah?" the Frenchman asked. Arthur lifted his head. His eyes looked so dead.

"We haven't been on good terms for a long time," he said. "But I have to tell you this." Francis gave him a strange look.

"Britain, what are you saying?" he asked.

"We won't have much time left before the world ends," the Englishman said. "So I have to say this now."

"Britain?" Francis asked.

"I used to think you were such a stuck-up jerk," Arthur said with his voice trembling. "But deep down, you really aren't a bad guy. You have great food and you have really stylish fashion. You have been through hard times lately, but you managed to have that stupid smile on your face and keep calm and carry on better than I could." Francis slowly shook his head.

"I don't understand you," he said. "Why are you saying all of this? Are you sure you are okay?"

"Please let me finish," Arthur said. "I'm sorry that we haven't gotten along over the years. I might not be able to get the chance to bury the hatchet before it's too late." He looked so pale as his lips began to tremble.

"What I want to say is I'm sorry and you really are a great guy," the Englishman said.

"Arthur…" Francis said. The cursed man finished his milk and set down his cup.

"Goodbye, France," Arthur said. "Thank you for the milk. I do not expect to see you again until this world is close to the end." Francis watched as his rival/ally rose to his feet and walked over to the door.

"What are you talking?" he asked. "What do you mean the world will end? Are you dying or something? What's going on? Britain? Britain?" The door swung closed behind the Englishman. Francis lowered his hand.

_Arthur…_

* * *

Arthur made it home about one in the morning. He ran, but he couldn't escape the eyes of Hecate's sisters. She would probably tell her sister and mother about his activities for the night. At least now, Francis would be out of harm's way for now.

The Englishman unlocked his front door. As expected, Hecate sat on his couch in the darkened living room.

"Tell me where you've been all night," she said. Her calm tone chilled him just like the first encounter.

"Nowhere," Arthur lied. Hecate's flat, emotionless face didn't change.

"Do not lie to me, Arthur," she said. "I do not like it when you insult intelligence." The Englishman's eyes shifted back and forth. Hecate leaned forward with a catlike smirk on her face.

"You didn't say anything you ought not to, did you? To that  _Frenchman_?" she asked. Her prey frantically shook his head.

"No, no! I didn't tell him anything. I swear it!" he said. The nightcomer leaned back.

"Good," she said. "Now, my mother will be heading out to Ikebukuro tomorrow to check on the Tadpole Project and make her selections to breed for the gods of the new world." She closed her eyes and breathed in.

"Oh yes, I can taste it now," Hecate said. "Dear Yuzuru and Dear Yui are looking for the fifth gate as we speak." She opened eyes and focused on Arthur.

"We will be using your magic to wake up the breasts in the countryside," Hecate said. Arthur backed, shaking his head.

"I won't do it!" he said.

"Funny, I don't remember asking you." She rose to her feet and walked up to her prey. The nightcomer was smaller than him, but she still commanded every part of him. Arthur could see himself in her frozen eyes.

"The Great Beast has already been summoned," Hecate said. "His new master cannot command him yet, but it won't long. You will get to work summoning the beasts in fields to aid our put of the game. Do I make myself clear?" Arthur's eyes darted around as she held her gaze.

"Do I make myself clear?" Hecate repeated. The Englishman clenched his fists, but loosened them. He dropped his head.

"Yes," Arthur whispered. Hecate stood on her tip-toes and kissed him on the lips.

"Very good, dearest," she said. Arthur could feel himself sinking deeper into hell as the nightcomer threw her arms around his neck. How did he get this weak? When he did get this weak? Meanwhile, Hecate smiled to herself in the darkened room.


	10. Cryptomeria

Match Ten: Cryptomeria:

Alfred walked up to Florence's door. He had on his favorite t-shirt and nicest pair of jeans. It took about thirty minutes to convince Lydia to let Florence come with him for the day.

"You can't keep her from me forever, dude," he said over the phone. "Wouldn't it be better if she died having happy memories? It would be depressing if she died in the house staring at four walls." Lydia groaned over the phone.

"Fine, whatever," she grumbled. "Have her back before sundown!"

"Thanks," the American man said. He broke into a happy dance after she hung up. Today, Alfred knocked the girls' door.  _She's going to love Coney Island in the summer!_  The American man stepped back when the door opened. Florence's head came up to his chest. She had her red hair tied back into a messy ponytail. Her skin had a familiar healthy glow she was known to have in the summer. Her red halter top and black rolled up jeans made her look like a teenaged girl. Alfred hadn't noticed how much prettier she looked when she smiled.

"Hello, Alfred," Florence greeted him.

"You look cute," he said.

"Aw, thanks," she said.

"You ready to go?" Alfred asked.

"Yes," his date said. The American man held out his arm. Florence took held after a quick paused. Upstairs, Lydia watched them leave with a frown on her face. She shook her head as she closed the curtains.

* * *

"You'll love Coney Island in the summer," Alfred bragged. "Some of my happiest memories are there with my brothers."

"Are we going to the aquarium again?" Florence asked.

"Not today," he said. "I want to show you the boardwalk in all of its summer glory! Have you ever been on a ferris wheel before?"

"Once when I was little," Florence said. "My parents took me out to a fair in New Orleans so that I would be exposed to society for a change."

"Good, good," Alfred said. "Ferris wheels can be very romantic, you know?" The whole time, he was cheering himself in his head. Shame he didn't stop by a flower shop on the way to her house. Then again, he wasn't certain what kind of flowers to get her. He went back and forth between roses and sunflowers. By the time he made up his mind, it was time to pick her up. Alfred rubbed his forehead.  _Maybe I'll get her some flowers on the way back._

"Is something wrong?" Florence asked.

"Huh?" the American man asked, turning his head. The tree spirit tilted her head.

"You looked like you had a headache or something," she said. Her date broke into a huge grin.

"I'm fine!" he shouted. "Don't worry about it." Alfred broke into loud laughter while people stared at him on the bus. Let them stare. He was determined to make this work, flowers or no flowers.

* * *

They arrived at near the boardwalk around eleven. Alfred breathed in the warm salty arm as he raised his arms above his head.

"This is so much better than being in the city!" he shouted. Florence looked like a child who had just discovered the world for the first time. The sun seemed to kiss every inch of her skin. Alfred liked how the wind tussled with her ponytail.

"So, shall we go to the fair first or walk along the boardwalk?" he asked. Florence turned to him with a smile on his face.

"The boardwalk," she said.

"Okay," Alfred said. He put his arm around her shoulders and they began their walk. It felt a little to be just the two of them together. Would Lydia sink to be spying on them? The bus didn't look that crowded and as far as he knew, Florence's sister didn't leave the house.

"She's not following us," Florence spoke up.

"Wha?" Alfred asked.

"I can't sense her at all," she said. "She's still back at home. We're alone today."

"You can tell all of that?" he asked.

"Yes."

Alfred made a strange face. "How?"

"It kind of hard to explain. I've had this power since I was little girl. I can tell who's around just by what mood they are in."

The American man stared at her like a new animal in the zoo. "Can you tell what mood I'm in right now?" They stopped walking in the middle of the boardwalk. Florence eyed him for a few seconds.

"You seem to be happy, but very worried for some reason. Did something happen?"

Alfred trembled as his eyes shifted away. He didn't know where to start on the visions of that little girl with the Hello Kitty backpack. Or Arthur looking sick and closing himself off from the family. Or everyone seemed so tense at the world meetings.

"I've just had so much on my mind," the American man said at last. He grabbed her by the hands.

"Let's not talk about it right now," Alfred said. "I just want to enjoy this nice day with you."

"Alright," Florence said. The two resumed their walk. The seagulls added to the soundtrack of summer playing in the American man's head. More and more people were starting to show up on the boardwalk. Parents with their kids looked around to purchase balloons. Couples were also out on dates here too. Alfred took in the soft scent of lavender in Florence's hair. He enjoyed their walk on the boardwalk back in December last year, but summer was making that much perfect.

"Would you like to go and buy a kite?" Alfred asked. His date gave him a puzzled look.

"What for?" she asked.

"I don't know," the American man said. "I thought about flying it while we're on the beach."

"Can you even fly one?"

"I would love to," Florence said. She snuggled against his cheek. Alfred broke into a little smile.

"Say, have you ever had salt water taffy?" he asked. His date shook his head.

"You haven't?" Alfred asked.

"No," she said. The American man rubbed the back of his head.

"Wow," he muttered. "Well then, you are in for a treat! I know just the shop that sells the best treats and beach supplies!" Alfred pulled Florence along on their walk.

* * *

They found a shop called Louie's. The bells made a light metal ringing sound as Alfred pushed open the door. As they looked through the kite section, the American man wondered what they should do next. It was still too early to go to the museum. How didn't know how long they were going to walk on the boardwalk. Ferris wheel and beach felt more appropriate in the evening when the crowds were winding down. They still had some time before lunch. Alfred rubbed his forehead as he struggled for a way to fill time.

"Hey Florence," he said. The tree spirit looked through the different colored kites in plastic wrap.

"Hm?" she asked.

"You want to look around at some of the shops along the boardwalk until lunch?" Alfred asked.

"Alright," she said. The tree spirit turned around with her kite of choice in her hands. The picture on the front showed that it's supposed to be a brightly colored sea turtle.

"Isn't it cute?" Florence asked. Alfred narrowed his eyes.

"It's not my taste, but if you like, I'll buy it for you," he said.

"Thank you," she said. Alfred began looking for a kite of his own. The American man settled on an eagle design. It was either going to be that or the Superman kite. In the end, the eagle won.

"I'll get you next time," he said to the Superman kite. Alfred turned to see Florence looking at the surfboards.

"Is there anything else you want to buy?" he asked.

"Not really," she said.

"Alright," the American man said. He and Florence walked up to the cashier. Alfred spotted the barrels of salt water taffy near the counter. He decided to get two bags worth.

"You're really going to love this," the American man said. As he was filling his bag, something else on the counter caught his attention. Alfred first saw the metal silver flower against black velvet. As his eyes trailed upwards, he couldn't help but admire the black chord attached to the item itself. The necklace wasn't alone either. Alfred looked in the middle and spotted little white shell studs.

"Hey Florence," he spoke up.

"Yeah?" she asked.

"Are your ears pierced?" the American man asked.

"No," the tree spirit said.

_Damn it!_  "Of course not!" Alfred quickly brushed it off. He shrugged to himself and picked up the box. The clerk watched as he put it on the kites.

"Will that be all?" she asked.

"Oh," Alfred said. He put the bags of taffy on the counter. The clerk rang up everything.

"That will be $25.86," she said. Alfred paid for all of the things on the counter. The clerk gave him back his change

"Have a nice day," she said.

"You too," the American man said. Florence followed him out the store. Alfred stopped just outside the door.

"Hey, Florence," he spoke up. "Could you hold up for a second? I have something I want to give you."

"What is it?" she asked.

"Hang on," he said. The American man reached into his bag and pulled the little box. He took the necklace.

"Could you hold up your ponytail for a minute?" he asked. Florence lifted her hair from her nape.

"Good," Alfred said. He clasped the silver and black flower necklace around her neck. She looked down just as he came around for a look.

"Do you like it?" Alfred asked.

"It's beautiful," she said. The American man felt like flying away.

"I saw it and thought about you," he said.

"Thank you, Alfred," Florence said. She wrapped her arms around his neck. The American man pulled her a hug.

* * *

The couple walked along the boardwalk, talking. They stopped at a couple more stores. Despite finding a number of interesting trinkets, they didn't buy anything else at the time.

"Florence, have you ever kissed anyone?" Alfred asked as they resumed their walk.

"No," she said. Her answer intrigued him. The American man had to shake away any naughty thoughts about his date. Instead, his stomach growled.

"Hey, why don't we go get lunch?" Alfred said. "I know a great pizza place around here. They even serve vegetarian and dessert pizzas."

"Dessert pizzas?" Florence asked. "That sounds interesting." He put his arm around her shoulders.

"Wait until you try it," he Alfred said. The American man led her along the boardwalk. They ended up at Tony's Little Italy. Alfred got himself and Florence a talk outside and ordered a four-cheese pizza topped with basil, Spanish, tomatoes, and pesto. These weren't little slices either. The sizes would put the Italian brothers' pizzas to shame. Florence took a bite of her first slice.

"Mmm!" she said. "It's like the blends are dancing in my mouth."

"We might have to bright Lydia with us next time," Alfred said as he chowed down on his slice of pizza. "Heck, Feliciano and Lovino would love this place!"

"Uh-hm," his date said.

"You've got a little cheese on your chin there," Alfred said. Florence reached up and wiped away her chin. The American man looked and nodded.

"You're good now," he said.

"Thanks," she said. Alfred smiled as he watched finish off the pizza on her plate. If she wasn't going to die soon, maybe he could dream about more dates with her. If they had time, they could probably do Coney Island around Christmastime again.

"Hey Florence," Alfred spoke up.

"Yeah?" his date asked.

"When is your birthday again?" the American man asked. The tree spirit paused and took a moment to think.

"Mostly in the spring," she said. "We didn't exactly stick on a date. Lydia and I would celebrate on the first day of spring. I don't remember the day my parents found me and took me in."

"First day of spring… okay…" Alfred said, rubbing his forehead. "And when's Lydia's birthday?"

"October 10th," Florence said.

"October tenth," he said. "That's easy to remember."

"And yours is July 4th," his date said. The American man nodded.

"Yep!" he said. "The best day ever!" Alfred laughed loud enough to draw stares from the people walking around. Once he calmed down, he finished his last slice.

"Hey, we should go down to the museum before it gets crowded," he said.

"What about the dessert pizzas?" Florence asked.

"We'll get the little ones," Alfred said. They ordered little cinnamon and chocolate pizza pies with icing drizzled on top. The American man found them so sweet that he nearly broke a tooth.

"How is it?" he asked. Florence chewed for about five minutes before swallowing.

"It's sweet," she said. "A little too sweet."

"Would you like me to order some milk?" Alfred asked. His date nodded. The milk turned out to be helpful with polishing off dessert. The American man paid the bill and laid down the tip.

"Ready to go?" he asked.

"Yes," Florence replied. Her date lid her back to the boardwalk.

* * *

Alfred next took Florence to the Coney Island Museum. Before they went inside, he took out his cell phone.

"Before we go inside, we have to get a picture together," he said. "Hang on." Alfred looked around and happened to spot a couple about to walk into the museum.

"Excuse me," he said. "Could you get a picture of us together?" Alfred pointed over at Florence standing a few feet away from him. The man with a baseball cap perked up.

"Sure," he said. Alfred handed him his phone and walked over to entrance with Florence.

"You ready?" the man asked. Alfred put his arm around his date's shoulders.

"Yes," he said. The other man pulled up the camera function on the cell phone.

"Say cheese!" he said.

"Cheese!" the other couple said. They had three pictures done together before the man handed Alfred back his phone.

"Thank you," the American man said.

"Have a good day," the other man said before heading inside with his girlfriend. Alfred and Florence followed them inside.

By 4:15, Alfred took Florence back towards Deno's Wonder Wheel Amusement Park. To his surprise, the park wasn't as crowded at this time of day. The American man had one objective in mind. Okay, two, but that wasn't the point.

"Welcome to the main attraction on Coney Island!" Alfred said aloud. "Twenty-one rides and one roller coaster! The best part about this place is the Wonder Wheel itself!" Florence gave him a weird look.

"Why are you yelling like that?" she asked. Alfred laughed it off as he lowered his arms.  _What the hell are you doing, idiot?! You're getting carried away again! Knock it off!_  The American man cleared his throat.

"Which one would you like to ride first—Spook-a-Rama or the Wonder Wheel itself?" he asked.

"What's Spook-a-Rama?" Florence asked. He grabbed her by the waist and chuckled.

"Come along and you'll see," he said. The American led her along the path as they disappeared into the crowd. They rode Sook-a-Rama as a starter. Alfred screamed like a little girl while Florence looked around like a child who has just seen fireworks for the first time. By the time they got off, all of the color had drained from the American man's face. Florence waved her head in front of his face.

"Are you alright?" she asked. "Alfred? Alfred?" Her date was quick to snap out of it.

"Of course!" he lied. "That was fun!" Again, he laughed it off. Florence stared at him with a funny look on her face.

"Say, it's about dinnertime," Alfred added. "Let's grab one of those famous Coney dogs. I'm sure that they have tofu or veggie dog."

"Okay…" Florence said. He took her by the hand and led her further into the crowd. Dinner consisted of tofu Coney dogs and fresh and fluffy funnel cakes. Florence licked the powdered sugar off of her fingers.

"Good?" Alfred asked.

"Yeah!" Florence said. "I never had this before!" Alfred blinked.

"Are you serious?" he asked. His date nodded once. The American man whistled to himself.

"Wow," he said. "You really don't get out much, do you?"

"What?" the tree spirit asked. Alfred waved her off.

"Never mind, let's get on that ferris wheel, shall we?" he suggested. He handed his date napkin to clean herself off once she finished her funnel cake.

* * *

The ferris wheel. Most couples loved this ride because of the romantic opportunities it provided. Just themselves and the view outside. Alfred held Florence's hand as they slowly went up.

"I really do like you," he said. His cheeks flushed a light pink.

"Aw, you're so sweet," Florence said. The American man wasn't sure if she understood what way that he liked her. Usually, he would push further to get a clearer meaning, but something inside of him held him back. Instead, he looked out the window of the cab.

"Do you like me too?" he asked in a small voice.

"Of course I do," Florence said. "You are one of my favorite people." Alfred froze when she said that. What did she mean by that? She didn't describe him as "friend", but it felt she wasn't really getting what he was saying. The tree spirit wasn't naïve, but the American man didn't quite know him to express his feelings without coming off as abrasive. He thought about kissing her then and there, but somewhat it wouldn't feel right. Besides, they still had one more stop on their date.

* * *

Alfred and Florence went down to the beach. To the American man, this was the grand finale. The crowd was starting to wind down and the setting sun provided a gorgeous backdrop.

"Do you think we can fly our kites at this time of day?" Florence asked as she watched Alfred unwrap their kites with their plastic.

"Why not?" he asked. "We're already out here. Besides, there's still enough air to keep them up in the sky." Alfred handed his date her brightly colored turtle.

"How you are flying kites?" he asked. Florence pushed her bangs from her forehead.

"It's been quite a while," she admitted.

"That's okay, we'll make it work," her date said. He picked up his eagle. The couple tried their best to fly their kites near the waves. Alfred's eagle kept looking like it wanted to dive into the water. Florence's turtle barely floated along the wind. The tree spirit couldn't stop laugh at how much their poor kites didn't seem to want to stay in the air.

"Think we should give up?" Florence asked.

"No!" her date insisted. "Just a little bit longer, please? Please?"

"Alright," the tree spirit said.

"Yay!" Alfred said. After about thirty minutes, the American man gave up.

"What do you want to do now?" he asked as he reeled the kites back in.

"We could just watch the sunset," she suggested.

"I don't mind doing that," Alfred said, perking up. The couple lay in the sand, watching the sun set. The American man replayed the day's events. They had a good day together. He wished there was still time to do this every summer.

"Promise that you will stay with me, like, forever," Alfred said. It felt vain to ask her something like that, but it felt so right at the same time.

"I will," Florence whispered back. The American man leaned in and gently kissed her on the lips. To his pleasant surprise, she kissed him back. Alfred pulled her into his arms. Maybe, there was some help for furthering their relationship after.

But, for every moment of bliss in the Waste Land, a sea of pain comes along and washes it away.


	11. Failure, Pressure, and Biao

Match Eleven: Failure, Pressure, and Biao:

-Ju-

I am not pregnant yet. Yao and I keep trying, but so far nothing. I keep looking for ways to keep the sex interesting. Sometimes, I have to remind Yao not to bring up babies at all. When he slips up, the mood goes dead. I end up rolling over and going to sleep. Yao pushes on my shoulder to try and wake me up.

"Oh come on," he complains.

"Nope," I said.

"Don't leave me hanging like this."

"You had your chance tonight, but you had to say the b-word."

"You mean 'baby'?"

I pulled my pillow over my head. "And this is why you aren't getting any tonight. Good night, Yao."

"That's not fair," my husband complained. "You've already got me hard. What am I supposed to do now?"

"That's not my problem. Maybe I might give you some tomorrow. But for now, let me sleep," I said. Yao tried shaking on my shoulder more, but I pretended to be asleep already. Finally, he gave up and walked into the bathroom.

Yao's getting better at this, though. He doesn't mention babies at all when we're about to try again. But, I'm still not pregnant. It didn't help that the mothers of the clan keep trying to pressure me as well. Bik looked at me with sympathetic eyes this morning.

"It's okay if you can't conceive now," she told me. "It took your parents four years before they had you." I don't know if that's supposed to be helpful or not. It felt like something died in me. Bik smiled and put her arm around my shoulders.

"I wouldn't worry too much about it," she said. "Your mother had many health issues. You're young and healthy on the other hand. These things just take time." Gee, thanks. Can't they talk to me about something other than babies. Every time they open their mouths, I want to run away. But, I don't know how to stop them. I didn't want to come off as rude when they were trying to help me, but they are smothering me at the same time.

"How has your diet been?" Bik asked.

"Huh?" I asked.

"Have you been eating the food I've recommended you?" she asked. I didn't catch on right away. My face had a blank expression on it before something clicked inside.

"Oh!" I said. "Yeah, yeah."

"Good!" Bik said. "I just need to come up with a diet plan for Yao to increase his sperm count and strengthen the little guys up."

"Okay, I did not need to know that," I said. "Plus, shouldn't you be talking to him about that issue?"

"Yeah, but you are his wife," she said. "It's the wife's job to make sure her husband does the right thing. You have to be hard on him about what he eats and everything else that goes into his body." I nodded and pressed my lips together.

"You got me there," I said.

"I'm going to come over there one day and make a proper meal for you both," Bik said.

"You don't have to do that," I said. "I am getting better with my cooking. Really I am."

"Then, I will show you how to make it."

"You don't have to do that. I can just look the recipes up online."

"No can do. You can't rely on the internet all the time. Besides, it has a tendency to cut corners. Let me show the right way to cook proper meals for reproduction." Her tone warned me that I should give up now. I dropped my shoulders and sighed.

Bik's not the only this week.

This morning, I was about to head out when there was a knock on my door.

"Coming!" I shouted. I raced over to the door as the bell rang again.

"Who is it?" I asked as I looked out of the peephole.

"Mei!" a half-tired voice answered. A confused look came over my face as I opened the door. Mei stood outside in her pajamas with a small paper bag in her hand.

"Mei?" I asked. "What are you doing here? What are you doing up this early?" She looked me frowning as she handed me the bag.

"Mom sent me over here to give you that," she said.

"What is this?" I asked.

"It's an ovulation kit," she muttered. My face dropped as my eyes widened. Mei looked like she wanted to go back to bed.

"What?!" I yelled. Mei rubbed her right ear.

"Gag, too loud," she complained.

"Sorry," I whispered. "But why are you giving me this?"

"Mom's making me do it. Why she won't deliver it herself is beyond me. Can I go back to bed now?"

I blinked as I took the bag. "Sure… Thank you. Uh… You can go now."

"Thank you," Mei said. She bowed her head and walked down the dirt road to her house. I sank to my knees with big eyes. Don't tell me… They wouldn't resort to using my friends to get me to have a child. I broke down whining as I messed up my hair.

"Gah! No, don't do that to me!" I wailed. "I don't know how much more of this I can take!"

"Are you feeling okay?" I heard behind me. I lowered my hands and turned my head. Yao stood in the doorway, eyeing me. I slowly stood up and cleared my throat.

"Yeah," I said. "Mei just stopped by to give me some things." I prayed that he wouldn't ask me what it was. Instead, he gave me a straight look.

"Why would she be up this early?" Yao asked.

"Her mother sent her over," I said.

"Don't you have class today?" my husband asked.

"What?" I asked. I turned and looked at the clock on the living room wall.

"Ah!" I said. "I'm off now!" I ran out the door as fast as I could.

"Have a good day!" Yao yelled out after me.

* * *

What can I do? I am still mastering balancing college and the clan. Babies complicate things. I can see why Tina loves to be single. She's also not running a powerful clan either. But, she does show me some sympathy. My cell phone rang on the bus.

"Hello?" I asked.

"Hey girl!" Tina shouted over the other line. I held my phone away from my ear.

"Hello, Tina," I said.

"Any luck yet?"

I sighed and pushed my bangs from my forehead. "No. And they aren't helping either."

"That bad, huh?"

"You have no idea. Bik's coming to cook for Yao and I."

"That doesn't sound too bad."

"You know how she is! She insists on showing me how to make meals that will help with reproductivity."

"Are you serious?"

"Help me!" I looked up when the bus pulled up. I forced myself to smile at the bus driver as I climbed on.

"Are you heading off to college?" Tina asked.

"Yes," I said.

"Why don't you just drive there? Why do you have to take the bus?"

"I told you, it saves money. The school is across town, remember? The bus is just as effective as the car. I only need the car when it's a big meeting."

"I see. Fair enough. How long until you get here?"

"Fifteen minutes, why?"

"I've got some great news to tell you."

"Can't you tell me now?"

"No, I want to tell you in person so you can meet him."

I blinked at first. "Meet him?" I paused as I covered my mouth. "Oh! When did this happened?" I waved off a lady staring at him as I took my seat in one of the sideways seats.

"You'll have to meet him for yourself."

"Is he a good one?"

"Oh yes."

"Nice, I can't wait to meet him."

"He's right here with me now."

"Awesome! Where shall I meet you guys?"

"In the library. I'll see you soon."

I hung up the phone and broke down squealing. It felt good to hear something other than babies for a change. Everyone stared at me on the bus, of course. I just quietly shoved my phone into my bag. I think this was the first lover Tina's had since high school. The last date she had was a girl named Hannah. Or was her name Naomi? I can never get those two correct from memory. Anyway, Hannah or Naomi dated Tina during our freshman year. As far as I can remember, it didn't go so well. I don't know the exact details, but it ended with an argument and the girlfriend went to another school. I keep meaning to ask Tina what happened. I guess I will have to ask her some other time. Right now, I am happy that she found someone. Let's just hope this guy is actually a prince.

* * *

Outside of Tina, there are still my brothers and sisters in the clan that keep me from going crazy.

I didn't exactly go home tonight. Instead, I sat down on a sat bench in the college's garden. Part of me dreaded Bik waiting for me at home. I rubbed my forehead and sighed. Why haven't I asked the mothers to back off of me yet? I know they are trying to help me, but I don't know how much more I can take.

I pulled out my cell phone.

"Hello?" a guy's voice asked on the other line. I leaned back and sighed.

"Hi, Biao," I said.

"Ju, what's the matter?" he asked.

"Life."

"What happened now?"

"All of the mothers keep pushing me to have child. Your mother is the worst."

"I know. She's pushing me to marry Xin."

I sat up, blinking. "Still?"

"Yes."

"Why don't you go ahead and get married already?"

Biao nervously chuckled on the phone. "I don't know."

"You don't know?"

"Sorry."

I sighed and rubbed my forehead. "What are we going to do with you?"

"Keep me. I'm just that cute."

I rolled my eyes. "Idiot."

"What?"

I shook my head. "Never mind. I don't know how to get them to back off of me. They are trying to help me, but it's too much."

"You know how my mom is."

"Yeah… But if they keep going with this I'll probably end up barren. Wan even sent Mei over to give me an ovulation kit this morning."

"What?!"

I lowered my head. "Yeah. Please don't come to me or Yao with advice on him to get pregnant. That would just be too weird."

Biao laughed. "Don't worry, I won't do that."

"Thank you." I breathed out and pushed up my bangs. "But what am I going to do about your mom?"

"Do you want me to talk to her?" he asked.

"Anything will do at this point," I said.

"Alright, I'll talk to her," Biao said. "Maybe, I might try to get her off of my back about marrying Xin."

"Say, does Xin even want to get married?"

"I don't know. I haven't even asked. Why? Are you going to push me to marry her too?"

I smiled as I shook my head. "No, I'm just asking."

"Xin and I have been too busy with finishing up our final years in med school. Xin wants to have a stable career before she gets married."

"Fair enough. More and more women are focused on building their careers before they get married and have kids."

"Yeah. My mom is supportive of Xin's career, but she still wants us to get married. She's even thinking about grandchildren."

"Geez! What's gotten into Bik lately? Is she dying or something?" I asked.

"Not to my knowledge," Biao said. "She's doing fine."

"I see…"

"Really, my mom is fine. She just wants you to have children and she wants me to start a family."

I began to frown. "Seeking of which, are you going anywhere for dinner?"

"No…"

"Please eat with us tonight! Your mom has insisted on coming over to my house to show me how to cook foods to help with reproduction. I don't know how much more I can take with her asking me question of how the baby-making process is going."

"Do I have to?" he asked.

"Yes!" I shouted. I must have been so loud because I happened to look on the dirt path across from me and see two freshmen students staring at me. I smiled and waved them off. I returned my focus back to my phone call as they hurried away. Biao sighed over the phone.

"You aren't going to let me say no, are you?" he asked.

"Please?" I begged. "You won't have to do much. Just sit there and try to keep me from going crazy if your mom brings up babies again."

"Alright, fine," Biao grumbled. I squealed as I jumped up and down on the bench.

"Thank you!" I said. "You're like the best big brother I could ask for!"

"Too loud," he complained.

"Oh, sorry," I said in a low voice. "I'll see you this evening. I might have to give you something nice in return."

"Right," Biao said. "Anything else?"

"No," I said. "I'll see you when I get home. Love you."

"Bye-bye," he said. I didn't stop smiling as I hung up. Now, I think I can make it through dinner tonight. If Biao can get through to Bik, I think this process can go easier and maybe it will be more enjoyable. If I can survive tonight, I will still have my sanity. I rose to my feet and headed to the bus station. Looks like I will have to thank Tina and Biao for calming me down today.


	12. Great Beast

Match Twelve: Great Beast:

Feliciano walked up Heracles' door. He was dropped into a world of shock when the centaur greeted him with a mug of beer in his hand. The two men stared at each other up and down for five seconds.

"Yo!" the horse man said, waving. The Italian man blinked.

"Uh… Is Heracles in?" he asked.

"Hang on," the centaur said. He turned and walked into the house.

"Heracles!" he yelled. "You have a visitor!"

"I'll be down in a second," Heracles said. Feliciano blinked and tilted his head.

"Uh… who are you?" he asked. "My name's Feliciano. I'm Italy." The centaur narrowed his eyes, looking him up and down again.

"Which one are you again?" he asked.

"Northern," Feliciano said.

"I see," the centaur said. He stuck out his huge hand.

"I'm Dionysus," he said. "But you can call me Dio." The Italian man slowly shook his hand.

"Nice to meet you, I guess," he said.

"Oh, hello there, Feliciano," Heracles said when he reached the front door. "I see you've met Dio." The centaur turned and looked at the Greek man's hand.

"More beer, nice!" he said.

* * *

"So he's the Great Beast from the stories?" Feliciano asked in the living room. Dio sat on the other side of the room finishing off his beer. He set aside his mug and looked around for an unopened can of beer he missed on the floor.

"That's correct," Heracles said. Dio perked up when he found another can of beer and opened it. The Italian man tilted his head.

"Dio sure drinks a lot, no?" he asked. The centaur downed his beer.

"I'm going down stairs to get more wine," Dio said. Heracles and Feliciano watched as he got up and stumbled down the hall.

"Is he going to be okay?" the Italian man asked.

"Of course!" Dio shouted. "I can drink barrels of vine and be fine the next day!" He threw back his head, laughing as he disappeared down the hall.

"I've seen him do it," Heracles said. Feliciano opened his mouth, but the doorbell rang.

"Excuse me," the Greek man said. He got up and walked to the door. Dio walked back into the room with a keg in his arms. Feliciano stared at him with his confused, narrowed eyes.

"What?" Dio asked.

"How do you wear pants?" the Italian man asked.

"I don't want any. I don't believe in them."

"How do you go to the bathroom?"

"I just go."

"You just go?"

"That is what I said."

"Wow."

"And what about you?"

The Italian man gave him a strange look. "Me?"

"How do you use the bathroom?" Dio asked. Feliciano gave him a blank stare. The centaur had such a serious look on his face too. The Italian man's eyes shifted back and forth.

"Uh…" he began to say. Dio covered his mouth as he tried not to laugh. Feliciano looked at him in a strange way.

"Are you okay?" he asked. The centaur broke down into a hearty laugh for about ten minutes. Dio struggled to calm himself down as the Italian man looked even more confused.

"I'm just playing with you, man," he said. "It was a joke." The Italian man blinked as the centaur tried not to laugh again.

"Heh?" Feliciano asked, tilting his head.

* * *

Heracles opened the door to find Sadık standing outside. The Greek man frowned.

"Oh, it's you," he said.

"How's it going?" the Turkish man asked.

"Dio's really made himself at home," Heracles said. Sadık squinted behind his mask.

"Dio?" he asked.

"It's short for Dionysus," the Greek man said. "Because he drinks all of the time. I'm about out of alcohol in my house."

"But can you take his reigns yet?" Sadık asked.

"No," Heracles admitted in a low voice.

"What do you mean you?" the Turkish man asked. "It's been three weeks now. I mean, it would take you a while, but shouldn't you have at least made a little progress?" The Greek man looked behind him in the house.

"Would you like to come in?" he mumbled. Sadık raised his eyebrow.

"Excuse me?" he asked.

"Get inside," Heracles said with gritted teeth. "Don't make me say it again." His rival stared at him at first. The Greek man gritted his teeth.

"Move it already!" he hissed. Sadık shrugged his shoulders.

"Alright," he said. The Turkish man pushed Heracles aside and walked into the house. The Greek man rolled his eyes and closed the door behind them.

* * *

All three men sat with Dio in the living room. The centaur held up another mug of beer.

"Anyone want booze?" he asked.

"No," the three countries said. Dio shrugged and finished off his mug.

"Are you okay to be drinking that much?" Feliciano asked. The centaur threw back his head and laughed.

"It's fine!" he said. "Alcohol doesn't affect me like normal humans. At worst, I end having to go pee a lot."

"Thanks for sharing," Heracles said, frowning. Sadık looked the Great Beast up and down.

"How did you turn out like this?" he asked. Dio raised an eyebrow.

"How do you mean?" he asked.

"How did your end up as a centaur, if you don't mind me asking?" the Turkish man asked. Heracles cut him a cold glare.

"Stop!" he mouthed at his rival.

"Ah, I take form into whatever the spirit of the one who summons me," Dio answered like it was nothing. "The reason why I look like this is because of Heracles' soul."

"What were you before?" Feliciano asked.

"A phoenix," the centaur said.

"I do remember saying what you looked like during the first time the Woman in Red roamed the earth," Sadık said. He turned to the Greek man.

"Why couldn't you have summoned something as pretty as  _that_  beast?" he asked.

"Shut up!" Heracles barked.

"How rude!" Dio said, folding his arms across his chest. "I still look good, thank you very much!"

"Yeah, yeah," Sadık said, brushing him off.

"Your friend is quite rude," Dio said to Heracles.

"We're not friends!" the two men shouted. They folded their arms and turned away. Feliciano looked back and forth between the two.

"Uh…" was all he said. Heracles turned his head.

"Oh, what brings you here, Feliciano?" he asked. "Aren't you usually with Ludwig and Kiku? Did something happen between you guys?" The Italian man lowered his head.

"I don't know how to put it," he said. "Nobody wants to tell me what's going on. Everyone looks so worried for some reason. Kiku still locked himself in his house and he has smelly black spots on his hands and feet. And Ludwig keeps talking to himself while looking up this bella, Lydia, and her family." The other three men looked at him.

"Describe that last part," Dio said. Feliciano rubbed the back of his head.

"Ludwig talks about trying to take this bella to this address," he said. "I forgot where it was. I couldn't read the handwriting or what language it was in. All I know is that place doesn't exist anymore, but Ludwig says that the bella insists on going anyway."

"Have you ever seen this woman?" Sadık asked. Feliciano shook his head. Dio took a moment to think about this new information.

"Has anyone else seen this woman?" he asked.

"No," the Italian man said. "Everyone keeps saying that he keeps talking to no one. Gilbert tried to take the file away from Ludwig, but he keeps getting it back somehow." The centaur looked at Heracles.

"How well can you see my reigns now?" he asked. The Greek man narrowed his eyes as he looked along the Great Beast's torso.

"I can see it a little bit better," he said. "I can see the outline of it."

"What color is it?" Dio asked. Heracles shook his head.

"I can't tell," he said. The Greek man reached for the reigns, but Dio pushed his hand away as fast as he could.

"Stop!" he shouted. "Don't try to exhort yourself. You already burned your hand once when you tried to grab my reigns. The last thing you need is to be drained before the war begins." Feliciano about jumped out of the couch.

"There's a war?!" he yelped. Sadık moved to calm him down.

"There, there," he was quick to say. "It's nothing serious. Calm down."

"But…" the Italian man said.

"Don't worry about it," Sadık said. He stopped Feliciano as he opened his mouth.

"Don't worry about it," he repeated. The younger man finally closed his mouth and lowered his head. Heracles glared at Dio as the centaur covered his mouth.

"You weren't supposed to say anything to him," the Greek man hissed. The Great Beast lowered his head.

"I'm sorry," he said. Dio turned and walked down the hall.

"Now where are you going?" his handler-in-training asked.

"Getting more wine," the centaur said. Heracles dropped his head and sighed as the horse hooves disappeared down the hall.

* * *

For the longest time, Im Yong Soo couldn't figure out his estranged twin sister. Ever since the 50's, Mi-soon Soo kept to herself and looked at the trees outside while listening to her music from her Walkman. Alfred mistrusted her while the other Asian siblings pretended that she didn't exist. Im Yong, on the other hand, believed that she was just misunderstood. He tried to reach out to her by leaving teddy bears and candy at the border.

But lately, something is different about Mi-soon.

She seemed to have developed an interest in the Sea of Japan. The only rare time she came out to Ivan and Lin Yi's wedding, Mi-soon gave Kiku cold looks. Yao tried to talk to her, but she refused to even say hello. Im Yong wants to ask his twin what is on her mind, but doesn't know how to approach her.

For now, he watches from a distance. Even more so now that she's always attacking the sea more and more frequently in the coming days. He took it as a sign to panic when two missiles flew over his house. Alfred had his suspicions about the younger Korean twin, but now he and Yao were ready to step in at any time to stop her before she did more damage to the rest of the world. But, Mi-soon loved her family deep down inside. She wouldn't try to murder Kiku and Sena for no reason. There had to be a sound motive for this. There had to be.

Maybe, Mi-soon knew something that even the older countries and Kiku couldn't see for themselves.


	13. Apokalipsis

Match Thirteen: Apokalipsis:

-Russia-

Ivan sat in the back of the car, eyes narrowed. Estimated time to Rampo Biotech, an hour, thirty-nine minutes, and fifty-five seconds. Lin Yi slept on the plane. Ivan dropped her off at Kiku's house an hour earlier. He gave her money to do any shopping while she was in Ikebukuro.

"If you have any problems, call me," the Russian man told Sena.

"Right," she said. Ivan gave his wife a kiss before he turned to leave.

The Russian man moved his hands behind his head. He couldn't understand his boss' obsession with the Tadpole Project. They practically threw most of Russia's economy at this project every year. Granted, Kitano-sensei and Asato-sensei produced sound results every year Vozrozhdeniye came to visit. But to Ivan, it didn't mean much to him. His boss, on the other hand, dreamed of a giant battlefield covering the earth. The sky would turn red and rain blood. If they had their way, one tadpole would crush all armies of the world, bring the dying countries to their knees, Vozrozhdeniye making the rulers of the new world.

None of it meant anything to Ivan.

He looked at the other people in the car. Eight men and two women. Three men in the middle talked about seeing the tadpoles again. Each had a personal favorite. One of the men, Alexander, turned and looked back at Ivan.

"Ivan, if you had to choose one to be the ultimate victor in war, who would it be?" he asked. The taller Russian man shrugged and shook his head, uninterested.

"Don't mind him," Adrik said. "He's just here with us because the boss wants muscle in our group." A third man, Karp, turned to light his wife's cigarette. A woman with glowing green eyes took a puff.

"How can you say that Midori isn't a good choice?" Alexander asked.

"How can we be sure she won't go back in time to stop us?" Adrik asked.

"True. But I think that can be ironed out some."

"I say my vote is Tetsu."

"You just like fire."

"Hey, what can I say? Fire is the best discovery known to man. We cook with it. We build things with it. We keep warm with it. We can destroy things with it. Fire is a beauty of nature." His colleagues groaned.

"What?" Adrik asked.

"We get it, you love fire so much," Karp said. "You talk about it every chance that you get."

"And I suppose the science of evolution is more exciting?" Adrik asked.

"Hey, that's why we are all here on this planet," Karp argued. "And it's why these tadpoles exist in the first place. Natural selection." His wife rolled her eyes.

"If you say so," Adrik said. Ivan looked out the window. Those three talk about the same thing every year. Their picks never change either. Eleven more minutes until they reached their destination.

* * *

A Japanese woman and a Japanese man in a long black coat with fur-trim greeted them at the front doors. The younger Russian woman in the group seemed drawn to his charms. Karp's wife on the other hand didn't look impressed. She flicked out her cigarette on the pavement. The Japanese man spoke with the leader of Vozrozhdeniye. Ivan caught some of the conversation through his zoning out.

"Good afternoon, Katko-san," the Japanese man said in his perfect Russian. "Did you have good flight?"

"Yeah, yeah," Katko said, waving him off. "Are the test subjects ready inside?"

"Yes. Kitano-sensei's with them right now."

"Take us to them."

"Okay. Right this way." The group followed the Japanese man into the building. Ivan counted down to everyone eyeing the tadpoles like a new museum exhibit.

* * *

-North and South Korea-

Im Yong was quite popular with the girls in his school. Most of them found it easy to talk to him. Some even had crushes on him. And who could blame them? Short brown hair, nice jaw line, nicely muscular, and looked great in anything that he wore—traditional or modern. His free-spirited nature was like the ribbon to a perfect package.

Still, he had his sister to deal with.

They went to different schools, but they were next door to each other. Im Yong would look over at the prison-like school and see Mi-Soon coming and going every day. This morning was no different.

The younger twin kept her eyes down as she began her silent walk into the building. Im Yong wanted just once to walk over and ask her why she kept firing off missiles. Maybe, he could do that today. The Korean boy turned and walked over to the fence.

"Im Yong!" a girl yelled behind him. He turned to see one of his classmates running over to him.

"Oh, Jin-ho," he said. "It's you." A girl with long reddish-brown hair jogged over to his side. She peeked over the fence as Mi-Soon went inside.

"You're always looking over at that school," Jin-ho said. "See any cute girls over there?" She nudged him in the side as she asked. Im Yong gently pushed her off.

"No," he said. Jin-ho tilted her head.

"Then… why do you always look over at that school day after day?" she asked. "Their school can't be better than ours. I mean, look at it. It's looks like an empty prison." Im Yong lowered his eyes.

"You wouldn't understand," he said.

"Then help me understand," Jin-ho said.

"My sister goes there," Im Yong muttered.

"What?" his classmate asked as he walked into the school. It started out as good day, but Jin-ho had to go and ruin it.

That was just morning.

Im Yong wore his mask today. He hadn't done that in a long time. His therapist helped him through the separation and estrangement of his younger sister. Im Yong had just started to be his old self again. But still, the school day had to go on.

Classes and the video gaming club wasn't going to stop for one day ruined. Jin-ho tried her best to make it up to Im Yong.

"I'm so sorry that I upset you, Im Yong," she said.

"It's fine," he said as they headed down to the computer lab for their video game club. "I was just a bit upset this morning. I'm okay now, really I am." Nothing like mashing buttons and using a joystick to kill enemies to take away the pain. Today, the club was playing a new sci-fi war game. Jin-ho tried to sneak up on him with her player, but Im Yong made his man turn around and fire at her.

"Aw, darn! You got me again!" Jin-ho said. Im Yong laughed.

"I keep telling you," he said. "Your sneak attacks won't work on me." The Korean boy noticed another enemy coming for him, but he shot it just in time.

"Wow!" Jin-ho said.

"Thanks," Im Yong said.

Video game highs can only last for quite some time, however.

When club was over, the students left for home. Im Yong looked over at the school next door. He didn't see Mi-Soon walking home today. Nothing shocking, she probably wasn't in any school clubs like the older twin was. He needed to talk to Mi-Soon and find out what she's up to with her missile tests. It probably wouldn't be a good idea to potentially open old wounds. But her actions raised cause for concern.

He would get that chance when he got home.

Im Yong had just opened the gate to his house, he froze at what he found. Mi-Soon sat on his porch, eyeing him. Every inch of his being screamed "run away." But, he couldn't do that this time. He wanted this chance and now he got it. Sadly, his body wouldn't let him move.

"Hello, dear brother," Mi-Soon greeted him. Im Yong dragged his shoulders walked down the path. He stood inches away from his twin on the steps.

"Hello," Im Yong said in a low voice.

"Why are you acting scared of me?" Mi-Soon asked. "It's me, your own sister."

"I don't understand you," he said. The younger twin tilted her head.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Why do you keep firing missiles so much? Is your boss forcing you to start another and kill us all?"

Mi-Soon shook her head. "Not a war."

Im Yong looked confused. "Then… why are you doing this." His twin sister rose to her feet. Despite the older brother being taller and more muscular, the Korean boy found himself intimated by the small girl. She looked up at him before put her arms around him. Mi-Soon had to stand on her tip toes to reach his ear.

"We're trying to kill it," she whispered. Im Yong looked over at her.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Mi-Soon looked him in the eye. Her next request sent him reeling.

"Come back with me, dear brother," she said. Im Yong looked so hollow once her words reached his brain. The younger twin gave him a sweet, innocent look.

"The world is about to end anyway," Mi-Soon said. "How low do you think Kiku has before he succumbs to her? I'm just trying to find a way to stop it all. What I'm doing it finding a peaceful way to end his suffering."

"And you call firing nuclear missile peaceful?!" Im Yong shouted.

"There is no other way to kill her," she reasoned. "We've been watching her for years and nothing comes close to hurting her."

"And missiles are the only option you have left?"

"Yes."

Her words truly stuck the knife in him. What she was saying that killing her brother was the only way to save the world. Mi-Soon ran dainty fingers along his left cheek.

"You don't have to give your answer right away," she said. "But, you have to answer quickly before the Woman in Red is freed and kills us all. You would be better off if you came back with me." Mi-Soon let go of her brother and walked over to her house next door. Im Yong ran into his house with the color drained from his face and got on his phone.

"Doctor Ryom, I really need to talk to you," the Korean boy said. "It's really bad. Mi-Soon says that she wants to us to get back together, but she's been testing missiles. I don't know what to do. Can I come over to your office tonight?" He flopped back onto his couch and breathed out.

"Thank you," Im Song said. "I'll be over there in forty-five minutes." The boy hung up and looked at his phone. He could feel it all coming back.

* * *

-Russia-

Vozrozhdeniye all walked out of Rampo Biotech. Their leader was satisfied with the progress that the Tadpole Project was making. Kitano still wouldn't sell the tadpoles to him, but the leader wasn't deterred by this. Ivan didn't care. He just needed to pick up Lin Ying and head back to Moscow. He stopped by the Honda household. Sena and Lin Ying were outside waiting.

"How was your visit?" Ivan asked his wife.

"Good," Ling Ying said. "How was your business meeting?"

"Boring," the Russian man said. "Ready to go?"

"Yes," his wife said. Ivan turned to Sena as his wife walked over to his side.

"How was she?" he asked.

"Good," the older woman said. "She was really delightful to be around."

"How is Kiku doing?" the Russian man asked in a low voice. Sena lowered her eyes.

"He's just tired lately," she lied.

"I see," Ivan said, nodding. "We'll call you when well land in Russia."

"Thank you," Sena said. Both parties bowed and Ivan and Lin Ying headed back to the car.


	14. Therapy

Match Fourteen: Therapy:

-Kiku's Therapist-

Suzuki-sensei knew too much. That was why he had to die.

The answers were all in his notes with Honda Kiku. At first, Suzuki-sensei went along with the paranoid Japanese man's words and visions. His job was only to listen and take notes.

-Three Years Ago-

Kiku sat on the couch, trembling. At that time, he hadn't made contact with the Woman in Red yet. He was just having the visions. Across the room, Suzuki-sensei opened his notebook.

"Are you still having the nightmares?" he asked.

"Yes," Kiku said.

"Has there been any changes?"

"Yes."

"Describe them to me." Suzuki-sensei prepared his notes for more disturbing imagery. Kiku looked down at his hands as he began squirming in his seat. The clock ticking in the background did little to help the situation.

"It's okay," Suzuki-sensei said. "Take your time if you have to. If you need to, we can extend the session today." Kiku nodded with his head lowered.

"I hear a voice," he said at last. His therapist stopped writing.

"Is it the one you heard over the phone on the day of your welcome home party?" he asked.

"No."

"No?"

"I can't hear it, but I know it's calling out to me."

"What does it sound like?"

"Nothing, but I know it's calling me and it won't stop."

"What is it trying to say?"

Kiku narrowed his eyes as he dug in his brain. "I want to say find me, but it doesn't feel right."

"What do you think it's saying?"

"Find me. I will be waiting." Kiku looked up when he heard the pen dancing on the paper again. "Do you think I am crazy? You do, don't you? Don't you?"

"It is not my place to judge you," Suzuki-sensei said, looking up from his notes. "I am only here to listen and take notes before I make my assessment."

"But please tell me the truth," his patient pleaded. "Do you or do you not think I'm going crazy?"

Suzuki-sensei put down his pen. "I don't think you are crazy at all." Kiku lifted his head. His therapist had never seen his eyes get that big.

"Do you really mean that?" his patient asked in a hushed tone. "Are you just saying that to calm me down?"

"Do you want the truth?" Suzuki-sensei asked, pushing up his gold-framed glasses. The other man slowly nodded his head. His therapist turned the page.

"I mean that," he said. "I am here to help you." The twinkle in Kiku's eyes died in a flicker.

"I don't think you can," he murmured.

"What do you mean?" Suzuki-sensei asked. His patient trembled with his knees to his chest.

"I've already told you too much," he said. "If I tell you anymore, you could end up dead." Suzuki-sensei tilted his head.

"Why is that?" he asked. Kiku shook his head.

"Tell me," the therapist said. "I can't help you if you won't talk to me." His patient mumbled something almost inaudible.

"Hm?" Suzuki-sensei asked. He walked over and leaned into the other man's mouth.

"What did you say?" the therapist asked. Those six words signed his death warrant.

"Don't let the devil get me," Kiku said in an almost whisper. Needless to say, the session ended on that evening.

Over the course of eight months, Suzuki-sensei found himself buried in a troubling mystery. On the surface, it looked gibberish. Most of the time, Kiku didn't talk. The therapist still couldn't make heads or tails of this. That one phrase stuck out in his mind.

Don't let the devil get me.

Kiku wasn't a Christian. Maybe this was some unconscious code of some sort? Suzuki-sensei tried talking to Sena, but she couldn't give him much.

On the night he would day, Suzuki-sensei placed a phone call to his colleague from his desk.

"Hello?" a woman asked on the other line.

"Ah, Ishida-san," he said. "You're still awake. Good."

"Suzuki-san?" his female colleague asked. "What are you still doing there at work?"

"Yeah," the therapist said. "This particular patient has me stumped."

"Is it Honda-san again?" she asked.

"Yes."

"What is your question?"

Suzuki-sensei sighed and looked over his pages of notes. "Where do I begin?" He turned through each page with narrowed eyes.

"What the most thing that reoccurs?" Ishida-sensei asked.

"Let's see," the therapist said. "He keeps hearing a voice calling out to him."

"He hears voices?" she asked.

"Not exactly. It's kind of hard to explain. He mostly hears this voice in his dreams."

"So, it's a nightmare thing?"

"That's what I believed at first." Suzuki-sensei rubbed his forehead. "I don't know what to make of this anymore."

"Describe it to me the best that you can."

"Alright." Suzuki-sensei turned to page eight. "At first, he had dreams about a tower."

"A tower?"

"He says it's menacing and reaches the sky in the middle of a dead city. It took sixty days for this tower to be built. It's so tall that it blocks out the sun." Suzuki-sensei's eyes scrolled down the page.

"There's more are the creepy tower. He basically repeats the same thing about forty times."

"You said he heard voices. What are they saying to him? Are they telling him to hurt himself?"

"No. They are cries of pain and they keep saying this one phrases over and over. Well, they say a few other things. But this one phrase keeps popping up all over my notes."

"And what would that be?" Ishida-sensei asked.

"Don't let the devil get me," Suzuki-sensei said in a hushed tone.

"What? What does that mean?"

"I don't really know." Suzuki-sensei paused when he heard footsteps. "Hm?" He stood up and peeked out his door.

"Is something wrong?" his colleague asked.

"Uh… Listen, I will call you right back," the therapist said. "I thought I saw someone in the building."

"It's probably the janitor," Ishida-sensei said. Suzuki-sensei shook his head.

"That's not the janitor," he said.

"What are you talking about?" his colleague asked. "Hello? Hello?" Suzuki-sensei hung up his phone and wandered into the hallway when he spotted a little girl at the other end. He only caught her long ponytails and her fluffy pink bunny following her.

"Hey!" the therapist shouted. Suzuki-sensei ran down the hall after her.

* * *

By morning, the janitor started his daily cleaning. When he opened the men's bathroom, he was greeted by a dried red substance sticking to the floor. As he followed the trail along the floor, the janitor uneasy feeling as he looked up at the closed stall. He ran over and pushed open the door. His mop hit the floor with a smack as Suzuki-sensei's body was found lying face down in a pool of blood.

Sena and Kiku would learn about his death by eight a.m.

* * *

-Tse and Man's Love Story, Beginning-

-Seventeen Years Ago-

Lew Tse hadn't left her room in two months. She still hadn't gotten over the loss of her husband, the father of their unborn child. This was the love of her life. They had been together since they were fifteen years old. Lew Qing was her first love. She lost her virginity to him. They got married and now she was pregnant with their first child. When Tse got that phone around her fifth month of pregnancy that Qing had died in a car accident because of a drunk driver, she fell to pieces. Tse couldn't climb out her black hole such a loss caused her. The mothers of the clan tried to help the young widow get over her depression. Seven months into her pregnancy and her current condition couldn't be a good mix. Tse hadn't been eating much and wouldn't get out of bed. Bik tried to get her to go to doctors' appointments, but the young widow turned her down.

"There's no point to living or having this baby without my Qing!" Despite her declining health, Daiyu showed her own concerns.

"If see keeps this up, she'll end up losing a baby up instead having one," she said.

"I know," Bik said. "I will try to get her some help." Daiyu opened her mouth, but the nurse gently put her finger to her lips.

"We will handle it," she said. "You just rest and enjoy your baby." Daiyu closed her mouth and eyes. It was Wan who came up with the therapy solution.

"A couple of friends of mine went downtown to this depression clinic," she said outside of Tse's bedroom door. "They are working on their problems and the therapists there are very skilled."

"Are you sure we need to resort to that?" Cai asked.

"If this keeps up, she'll be without a husband  _or_  child," Bik said. "We have no choice if she wants to have a healthy baby." The nurse knocked on the bedroom door.

"Tse," she said. "Could you come out? We want to talk to you."

"No! Go away!" the young widow cried.

"Either come to the door or I will pick the lock," Bik said. "Take your picture. You have until five to do it. Five… Four… Three…" She backed up when the door opened a crack. Tse peeked outside.

"What?" she whimpered.

"Get dressed," Bik said. "We're heading out. I will not take no for an answer, missy. Get dressed and come on!" The nurse pushed her way into Tse's room and gathered up some clothes for the mother-to-be.

* * *

Bik took Tse to the depression clinic around noon. The younger woman looked out the taxi window in a daze.

"Come on," the nurse said. "We're about there. Listen, we really do care about you. We don't want you end up losing your baby too."

"Mmm," Tse mumbled. The taxi pulled up to the front of the building. Bik walked the young widow to the glass doors. She took care of the signing in.

"Do you want me to go in with you?" the nurse asked. Tse shook her head.

"No?" Bik asked. The young widow shook her head.

"Alright," the nurse said. "I'll stay with you until your name is called." Bik dragged Tse to her seat. When the widow's name was called, she walked down the hall alone.

"Call me when you're done," Bik said. She turned and walked out the door. An assistant led Tse down the hall.

* * *

The whole time, Tse sat in a fog. Bik and the other mothers dragged her out of her room and into a place where a strange would make her talk about her feelings and maybe give her some pills to "cure her blues". She would have been back in her room. Tse couldn't even imagine who this therapist would be. Probably some old stuffy man with judgmental eyes. Tse closed her eyes.

_I want to go home_ , she thought.

Then, the door opened.

When Tse looked up, the therapist was a man her age with long black and glasses. The long white coat made him look more professional. Tse could only stare at him in a blank fog.

"Good afternoon," the therapist greeted.

"Uh… hello…" Tse mumbled. The psychiatrist sat down in front of her.

"My name is Sun Man," he said. "You must be Lew Tse."

"That's right," the young widow mumbled with her arms over her belly as if to protect her unborn child from this man.

"How far along are you, of you don't mind me asking?" Man asked.

"Seven months." She looked him dead in the eye. "Are you going to drug me up with pills until I can't feel anything? I don't anything that is going to harm my baby." Man chuckled.

"No," he said. "We're going to talk."

"Talk?" Tse asked.

"That's right. You will talk and I will listen and talk notes."

Tse blinked as she tilted her head. "That's it."

"Yes. And then, I will assess the type of treatment you will need."

"But no pills?"

"We will have to see."

Tse stared at him with a confused look on her face. Something inside of her didn't trust where this could possibly go. Still, the other mothers practically forced her to come to this center for the baby's sake. She figured that she might as well suck it up and try to get help. Man pulled out his notebook and opened it.

"Do you know the cause of your depression?" he asked. "You can take your time if you need to." Tse bit on her thumb as she looked down into her lap.

"My husband was killed by a drunk driver on his way home from work," she said in a low voice. The widow waited for the therapist to comment. She trembled when he kept his eyes locked on her.

"He was my everything," Tse said. "We've been together since we were fifteen. He was my first love and the only man that I've ever slept with."

"When did you get married?" Man asked.

"Four years ago," she said. "We were really young." The widow's eyes welled up with tears. Despite her best efforts, she broke down sobbing. Tse buried her head in her hands.

"It's okay," Man said. "You can let it all out if you have if to. Take as much time as you need to cry."

"I miss Qing so much!" she wailed. "I don't know what I'm going to do without him!" Man rubbed her on the shoulder and shushed her. The pregnant widow spent the rest of the first session crying and talking all about Qing. Man kept to his word and listened the whole time.

"Would you like me to schedule another session?" he asked when time was up.

"Yes," Tse whimpered as she nodded. The therapist handed her his handkerchief.

"How does next Wednesday at two sound?" he asked. His patient wiped her eyes as she nodded. Man wrote down the appointment in his book.

"Alright," he said. "Would you like me to walk you to the lobby?" She nodded before blowing her nose.

"Okay," Man said. He walked her out of his office. At the time, Tse didn't know that his patient and caring manner would leave a lasting impression on her and the same way to him. For now, they were just patient and therapist.

* * *

-Im Yong's Therapist-

-Present Day-

Im Yong crossed the street to the public library parking lot with his hands in his pockets. He walked up to a bright candy red Hyundai and knocked on the driver's side window. The teenaged boy looked inside as the driver rolled down the window.

"I am so sorry to call you out here this late," Im Yong said in soft voice.

"It's okay," a woman said. "You haven't started self-harm again, have you?" The Korean boy shook his head.

"Good, good," she said.

"Can I get in?" Im Yong asked.

"Of course," the woman said. She unlocked her car doors.

"Thank you," the boy said, bowing. He walked around and climbed into the passenger side of the car.


	15. Uncle, Precautions, and Tina's Boyfriend

Match Fifteen: Uncle, Precautions, and Tina's Boyfriend:

-Ju-

In between trying to get pregnant and the mothers drowning me in advice and tools to help the process, I have been keeping track of Junjie and Jianjun. Ah, yes. Those two elephants in the room. We haven't forgotten about them. I have to put Szu and her parents' minds at ease as long as that rapist is out on bond. I can't have Hark looking at me with worried eyes every time I stop in and check on them. Qian is staying by Szu's side and seeing to her well-being.

But that isn't enough.

Five times a day, I check in on the people tailing them. Fei had some old friends in the police department.

"I have it taken care of," he told me. "Don't worry about it." Still, I can't be too careful. Junjie isn't too smart and he doesn't have daddy's money to protect him anymore. But, he is pissed. I wouldn't put it past him that he is looking for revenge. Then, there is my uncle. He's the smarter of the two. He probably has some scheme to take over the clan cooking up already. Jianjun's a skilled con man. He could weasel his way out of trouble with no problems.

I don't like it.

Before I headed off to college, I made another call to Detective Guo as I cleaned up my kitchen.

"Good morning, Wang-fuern," he said on the other line. "How you this morning?"

"I'm good," I said. "Any changes?"

"Not really," he said. "They're still at that motel downtown. Your uncle was on the balcony on the phone."

"Any sign of Junjie?"

"No."

I bit on my thumb. "I see."

"Don't worry, Wang-fuern. We won't let those sons of bitches out of our sights."

"Junjie I'm not worried about. Jianjun is the real problem."

"I understand. We're tailing their every move. We'll act if they do anything suspicious. You just take care of that clan of yours."

"Thanks."

"Will that be all?" Detective Guo asked. I shook my head.

"No," I said. "Just keep observing them."

"Will do," he said.

"Thanks again, goodbye."

"Goodbye."

I hung up feeling just the same as before. I took in a breath and turned towards the living room.

"I'm heading out now, dear!" I said.

"Have a good day, Ju!" Yao shouted back. I turned and walked out the door. I won't have a good day until both of them are behind bars.

* * *

I have been working to keep my clan safe. Not just them, either. Fei's police friends helped me track down all of Junjie's victims. For days, I called to warn them that he was out on bond. A couple of them were scared. One talked about going into hiding. An ex-girlfriend refused to be intimidated by her abuser.

"Thank you for letting me know," she said. "I will keep an eye out."

"Please be careful," I pleaded.

"Oh, you bet your ass I will," she said. Meanwhile, I focused my attention back on Szu. Man stepped up to talk with her.

"We thank you for this," Lili said, bowing.

"I'm just happy to help," Man said. Lili took out his wallet, but our therapist held up his hand.

"Oh, no, no, no," he said. "You won't need to do that." The other man blinked at him.

"You sure?" he asked.

"It's on the house," Man said. Still, this wasn't enough. Junjie may be covered, but that still left Jianjun.

Yes, him.

He's stolen money from the clan before and we still haven't gotten it back. It's probably long gone by now. I groaned and rubbed my forehead on the bus. I didn't need that. The money wasn't the real problem either.

I leaned back and sighed.

I still have to deal with him. And I'm trying to have kid too? I puffed up my cheeks. Time to suck it up, buttercup. So far, I have had the banks alert me of suspicious activity on all of the accounts. We screen everyone we do business with. But, I feel that it's not enough. Hen-to and Fei have been reassuring to me.

"We'll get him when he moves," Hen-to told me several times. But the question is how. Through all of this protection, we haven't come up with a permanent solution. I don't think prison will hold Jianjun. The worst thing in the world is a humiliated man. We have seen that with Junjie.

Speaking of which…

I pulled out my cell phone once I got to campus. I bit my lower lip as the other line rang.

"Hello?" a man's voice asked. I stopped in my tracks.

"Zhong!" I said. "I'm so glad I caught you."

"Wang-furen?" he asked. "What is it? What's the problem?" I took in a deep breath.

"It's Junjie," I said. "My uncle bailed him out."

"Okay… so?" he asked.

"I'm worried that he'll be out for revenge. He might go after you first." The whole time I noticed that he didn't sound so concerned. I have seen what a humiliated man in capable of. I closed my eyes.

"I say this for your and your wife's safety," I said. "I have seen what a humiliated man is capable of. Junjie is that humiliated man."

"First of all," Zhong said. "She's not my wife anymore. I kicked her out and we are divorced."

"Oh…" I said in a quiet voice.

"Our divorce was finalized last week. She went to go live with her family."

"Any plans to remarry?"

"No. It's too much of a pain for me. I already had marriage once and look what it got me."

I made a face. "So… What will you do now?"

"I already rewrote the will. That bitch and her son will get nothing."

"Can ask who's getting what, if you don't mind?"

"My brother and mother is getting everything. My lawyer helped me make everything official. All that's left to do is finish cleaning up the mess."

I forced myself to smile and nod. "Ah." This conversation wasn't going in the way that I would've liked. But, I couldn't bring myself to say anything.

"Was there anything else you wanted?" Zhong asked.

"Hm?" I asked. "Oh, not really. Anyway, please be careful."

"I will, Wang-furen. That good-for-nothing bum and his whore mother can't touch me. I will be fine. Thanks for the warning."

I had sinking feeling that my words didn't get through like I had hoped.

* * *

I don't know. I probably just need to get into a happy mood.

"Hiya!" I heard someone shout in the hallway. I turned to see Tina walking towards me with a taller white man on her arm. For some reason, I found myself smiling.

"Hello, Tina," I said. "Hi Dean." Her boyfriend smiled and nodded. Tina tilted her head.

"Still having troubles with your uncle?" she asked.

"Yeah," I said. Tina walked forward and patted me on the back.

"Aw," she said. "Want some good news?"

"You have any?" I asked. My dear friend smiled as she put her arm around my shoulders.

"Dean and I are going to have a little party this weekend," she said.

"What for?" I asked. Tina walked over to Dean and grabbed him by the arm.

"To celebrate our love!" she announced. Her boyfriend chuckled. I met Dean Wingard three weeks ago. He doesn't talk much. But, Dean's a vast improvement from her last Hannah or Naomi. Qun seemed to be okay with him.

"He's nice," she said in the restaurant after Tina and Dean left early. "Dean doesn't try to take over the conversation and he lets Tina talk as much as she wants."

"Yeah, he sure does that," I said. "How have you been?"

"Good," my old school friend said. "I'm getting married soon."

"Really?" I asked. Qun showed off her engagement ring. I whistled as the diamond caught the sunlight.

"Who's the lucky man?" I asked.

"He's a banker," she said. "Papa was so impressed."

"Does he make you happy? Your fiancé, I mean."

"Oh yes. He actually listens to me and considers me into our future. Plus, he makes me laugh and he loves to read." I broke into a smile.

"I'm so happy for you," I said. This was what I needed. Yao and I are trying to have a baby. Tina has a new boyfriend. And now, Qun was getting married. This could be enough to keep me from losing my mind over Jianjun and Junjie.

"How is Szu doing?" Tina asked in present day.

"Good," I said. "Man talks to her every day to help her through this turn of events."

"Good, good," she said. "And you?"

"Hm?"

"How are you holding up?"

"Oh. I'm struggling. I'm trying to keep my clan together while trying to put Jianjun and Junjie behind bars."

"Jianjun is her uncle," Tina explained to Dean. "Junjie is gross rapist guy." Her boyfriend nodded once.

"Oh, you haven't met the whole clan, have you?" I asked him.

"No," Dean said.

"Well, we'll have to change that," Tina cut in.

"Whoa there!" I said. "I don't think he's ready for that! He still has to get through  _your_  crazy first! He won't survive my clan, let alone Bik herself!"

"Aw, she's still pushing you to have a child?" Tina asked.

"Yes!" I moaned. "She and the other mothers won't give up!"

"Need a hug?" she asked.

"Yeah!" I said. Tina walked over and hugged me.

"Thanks," I said. Dean stared at us, blinking.

"You two seem close," he said. Tina turned to him with a huge grin on her face.

"We're just really good friends," she said. I smiled as I held up my thumb. I know, I will go back to tracking Jianjun and Junjie and trying to get pregnant by Yao when I get home. For now, I have Tina and her happiness to revel in.


	16. Aceldama

Match Sixteen: Aceldama:

-Germany-

The deeper in he goes, the more it shows. When was the last time Ludwig slept? He spent most of his days locked in his office, looking over the Harel file. The town of Polanów was completely destroyed by World War II.

But why did this woman want to go there?

Ludwig stared at his ceiling. All he could see now was her face.

His attention returned to reality when his cell phone rang.

"Hello?" the German man asked. A faded whisper filled his ear on the other line.

"I'm sorry, what did you say?" he asked. The whispering grew rapid in pace and the words slurred together.

"Hello?" Ludwig asked. "Who is this?" The whispering turned into a low growl. Whining blended in with the sounds.

"Who is this?" the German man asked again. "Hello? Hello?" The other line went dead. Ludwig stared at his phone.

This wasn't the first time stranger things started to happen.

The phone calls all happened around the same time. 9:47 p.m. His phone would ring and Ludwig would pick up.

"Hello?" he asked. The whole line would yield screeching or a death rattle sound for three minutes before the line would go dead. For the longest time, Ludwig couldn't wrap his head around it.

At night, the German man felt like there was something or someone watching over him at night. That woman in the red coat started to haunt his dreams more frequently. When it got too much, Ludwig voiced his complainants to Gilbert. His brother looked like he wanted to run away, screaming.

"Come on," he said instead. "Quit joking around, West." His words fell flat into his soup when he saw his brother's eyes.

"Oh..." he mumbled. Ludwig's hand trembled as he held his spoon.

"I don't feel so good," he mumbled.

"Hey," Gilbert spoke up. "You know what we need? A nice vacation. Why don't you and I go somewhere quieter for a little while?" The Prussian man paused when his younger brother mumbled something under his breath.

"I'm sorry?" he asked. Gilbert walked over to Ludwig's side of the table.

"She wants me to go to Polanów," the German man muttered. The Prussian man gave him a strange look.

"What are you talking about?" he asked. "Polanów doesn't exist anymore."

"She wants me to take her there," Ludwig said. "She wants to go there."

"But why?" his brother asked. "Who wants to go there?" The German man lifted his head. Gilbert backed up at the hollow look in Ludwig's eyes.

"Hey... Are you feeling okay?" he asked. The Prussian man shook him on the arm.

"Oi! Oi!" he shouted.

"No," Ludwig said at last. He stood up and walked away from the table.

"West?" Gilbert asked. The German man disappeared down the hall. His brother sat back, worried as he heard the door close. However, he turned around.

"Hello?" he asked. The Prussian man shook his head.  _What am I thinking? There's no one else here in this house._  Still, it wasn't enough. Gilbert picked up his phone and walked out of the room.

From the outside, the woman in the red coat stared inside. She looked like she had been crying. The woman held her hand to her chest. She said only one thing.

"I want to go home."

More tears ran down her cheeks. The glass frosted up at her touch.

* * *

-South Korea-

Im Yong looked down at his lap.

"My sister contacted me for the first time in years," he said. The teenage boy's hands shook in his lap. He grabbed onto his right wrist.

"What did she say?" Doctor Ryom asked. Her former patient took in a deep breath. He looked out the car window.

"She said that she wanted me to come back," Im Yong said.

"Why would she say that?"

"I don't really know. She says that the world will be ending soon."

"The world is ending?"

"Yes."

"Do you really believe that?"

Im Yong shuddered as he looked down at his lap. Mi-Soon's words haunted him. "The world is about to end anyway. How low do you think Kiku has before he succumbs to her? I'm just trying to find a way to stop it all. What I'm doing it finding a peaceful way to end his suffering." The older Korean twin held onto his stomach.

"I think I'm going to be sick," he whispered.

"If you're going to throw up," Dr. Ryom said. "Do it out the window." Her former patient nodded. Im Yong rolled down the car window. He took a deep breath.

"What do you want me to tell you?" Dr. Ryom asked. Her former patient shook his head.

"I don't really know," he said. "I just thought about calling you and here I am."

"I'm so glad you did."

"I didn't know where else to turn." Im Yong listened to the traffic outside of the car. For the first time in days, the Korean boy began to feel better. He clenched his fists in his lap.

"Hey, doc," he said.

"Yes?" Ryom asked.

"Can I stay in this car for a while? It helps me calm down."

"Sure."

Im Yong closed his eyes. "Thanks."

"Soo."

"Yes?"

"Promise me that you will not self-harm."

Im Yong turned to her with big eyes. "Doctor?"

"Please promise me you will not self-harm again."

"Doctor..."

"Promise me!"

Im Yong sighed and dropped his shoulders. "Alright." Doctor Ryom held out her right pinky.

"Pinky swear on it," she said. The teen-aged Korean boy stared at her.

"Do I have to?" he asked.

"Please?" the therapist asked. Im Yong narrowed his eyes and held up his pinky. Doctor Ryom linked hers with him.

"There," she said. "Repeat after me."

"Okay," Im Yong said.

"I, Soo Im Yong."

"I, Soo Im Yong."

"Will never resort to self-harm to cope with whatever my sister throws at me."

"Will never resort to self-harm to cope with whatever my sister throws at me."

"And..."

The Korean boy wrinkled his nose. "Do I have to do this?"

"Yes," Doctor Ryom insisted.

"Fine. And..."

"I will not let my sister get to me no matter what."

Im Yong couldn't bring himself to look her in the eye for that statement. His former therapist narrowed her eyes at him.

"Say it," she said. Her former patient took a deep breath.

"I will not let my sister get to me no matter what," the Korean boy repeated. His pinky clung as tight as he could to hers. Doctor Ryom finally let him go.

"Would you like me to drive you home afterwards?" she asked. Im Yong closed his eyes and sighed.

"Yes," he said.

"Okay," the therapist said. The Korean boy let the sound of traffic outside calm him down.

* * *

-Lydia-

The winter in 1938 became her downfall.

She met a man back in January. Right from the beginning, there was problems. The young man wasn't Jewish and came from one of the richer neighborhoods. She didn't dare take him home to meet her parents.

"Why couldn't you've picked a nice Jewish boy?" her father would've asked. But, she was tired of doing what she was told. She and her little brother grew up sheltered. There had to be life outside of the bakery. Ever since she finished high school, that dream grew stronger. Maybe this boy would be the key to achieving that dream.

She had no idea that this beautiful boy would lead her and family down a world of nightmares soaked in blood.

* * *

-Present Day-

The Woman in the Red coat watched Ludwig from the window. Her hand was pressed against the glass. The German man looked around inside of his office. He couldn't see anybody, but he knew that he was being watched.

"Hello?" he asked. Of course he would be alone in the office. But, the German man knew that wasn't true, was it?

Meanwhile around three in the morning, Doctor Ryom walked back into her apartment. She too felt like someone was watching her. The therapist pulled out her key and placed it into the lock. Doctor Ryom shivered as she went inside. Would she be next? Who can say...


	17. Vozrozhdeniye

Match Seventeen: Vozrozhdeniye:

They are called Vozrozhdeniye. They operate in the shadows. Rumor has it that Vozrozhdeniye works for Putin. Who are they really?

Ivan Braginski joined them six years ago. It was his boss' idea, really. He wanted Russia to be on top when the End of Days came. They've made their own preparations. For now, they would play nice with Tandeki and Mam. Those two were needed to lay the ground for them after all. Granted, Vozrozhdeniye did their own work in their part of the game. First of all, they controlled all of the news online. The public could be so easy to manipulate when the right emotion is struck. They wanted someone to share their voice.

Ivan read some of their articles. Tantalizing garbage to him as far as he could see. These were the stories that even the tabloids wouldn't take. People actually bought this trash? His boss told him not to question it. So, Ivan didn't ask. In fact, he wondered why his boss cared so much about this game in the first place. To the Russian man, it all sounded like a pain. He himself saw enough war in his lifetime. And who was to say Old Man Winter wouldn't come along and screw everything up again?

Vozrozhdeniye's isn't too concerned. Why? Oh. Because they had science on their side. In fact, a Vozrozhdeniye meeting was just a bunch of scientists talking to each other. Ivan always sat in the back of the room, looking so bored.

Tonight was the same thing.

Ivan looked at his phone. This was going to be a long night too? The leader stood up and cleared his throat.

"The Tadpole Project is going well," he said. "But Kitano won't budge on our offers." The other seven men and two women frowned.

"This will not do," their leader said.

"So what do you suggest we do?" Ivan asked. He lost count of how many times this back and forth kept going. Clearly, Kitano wasn't going to give up his precious tadpoles. Granted, the Russian man understood what made them so desirable. These tadpoles were smart, sociable, quite gifted, and really attractive. Their powers grew each day. All three sides desired them so much. Tandeki refused to share them. Vozrozhdeniye and Nam would have to fight to take them from Tandeki's grasp. What did Ivan think of the whole struggle over possession of the tadpoles? Well, he would be lying if he said he wasn't interested on how this could turn out.

"That, I am not sure of," the leader said. "But we are working on ways to weaken their powers long enough to get them to Russia." Ivan raised his eyebrow.

"How?" he asked. "Any drug we try on them won't work." Alexander turned his head.

"Ivan, are you doubting us?" he asked.

"No," the tall Russian man said. "I'm just saying you all keep using the same tricks you've been using every time loop." The leader took a step forward.

"What do you suggest we use?" he asked. Ivan shoved his phone back into coat pocket.

"The dullahan neutralizes them, yes?" he asked.

"Yes," their leader, Vladimir, replied. "What about it?" Ivan walked up to him. The other members of Vozrozhdeniye's inner circle could never stop being amazing at how their muscle man towered over their boss. Ivan looked Vladimir in the eye.

"Why not make a counter to those tadpoles?" he offered.

"Go on…" Vladimir said. Ivan looked around the boardroom in his house. A spotted a figurine of Godzilla sitting on his bookshelf. He picked it up and examined it.

"Will that be a tadpole?" Karp asked.

"Sure, why not?" Ivan said, brushing him off. He looked around the room another particular figurine caught his eye. Kiku gave him a nude winged bird-like woman five Christmases ago when he was better. Ivan looked at the small brown and red lady for a moment before setting Godzilla in front of her. He ran his finger on the tops of their heads.

"If you want to subdue one monster," the tall Russian man said. "You have to bring in another man, da." He watched as Vladimir and the other members of Vozrozhdeniye's faces slowly lit up.

"So, we need to come up with something like the tadpoles to seize them for ourselves?" Karp asked.

"Yes," Ivan said. Vladimir turned and patted him on the back.

"This is why I like working with you!" he said. The leader turned back to his colleague and they dove into the brainstorming. Ivan took his place at the back of the room. At least they were talking about something other than the same subject of taking the tadpoles for themselves like they have been doing over the past few time loops.

* * *

-Wang Ja-

The Hong Kong butler knelt by the door. Ever since he got that phone call for his boss when he was alone in the house, Wang Ja had been secretly learning Russian. He hoped this would be his ticket to get him and Li Ying out of this hostage situation. The butler began combing through Ivan's office when he wasn't home. He got the perfect chance when the boss and his wife went to Japan.

Wang Ja wasn't prepared for what he would find.

What was this about the end of world? Tadpoles? Angels? What was all of this? Wang Ja dug faster through the files. His Russian wasn't as strong when it came to reading, but he could pick up certain words. Ivan complained about the butler writing in his native language.

"I cannot read Mandarin," the Russian man would say when he would read over the messages that Wang Ja would take down. The Hong Kong would have to translate what he wrote down. As he read through the notes, one word kept popping up.

"Who is Tandeki?" Wang Ja asked himself. He quickly wrote down the name for himself and stuffed the files back into the desk.

One Google search later, the butler ended up further down the dark and twisted rabbit hole. On the surface, the Tandeki Group looked like a cutting-edge biotech company research drugs and medicine for mental illness. They didn't win any big awards. No deed of public charity. This group appeared to keep to themselves. Something inside of Wang Ja told him not to believe the hype. There had to be more to this story.

He took a deep breath and started searching through the deep web.

The line between truth and myth started to blur with the first results. The myth about the Woman in Red kept popping up when he plugged in the "Tandeki Group" the first time. Yao talked about this lady with dread. His siblings couldn't understand what about this woman had him so terrified. Wang Ja thought it was all just an elaborate ghost story. Now, Wang Ja didn't feel so sure anymore.

Suddenly, there was a knock on his bedroom door. Wang Ja whipped his head around.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"It's only me," Toris said.

"What do you want?" Wang Ja asked.

"Ivan's back," the Lithuanian man said.

"Okay…" The Hong Kong man didn't blink. Toris tilted his head.

"Did you leave the light on for him?" he asked.

"Yeah, yeah," Wang Ja muttered. His colleague gave him a strange look.

"I don't get it," he said.

"Get what?" the Hong Kong man asked.

"Ivan doesn't scare you at all?"

"No."

"But why?"

Wang Ja lowered his eyes. "Because I will take my sister and escape from here.

"What did you say?" Toris asked. The Hong Kong man walked past him with a cold look on his face.

"Wang Ja?" Toris asked, running after him.

Tonight, the Hong Kong man listened by the door. If he could get more information about Tandeki and this apocalypse game, he would have a way to break the contract with Ivan and free himself and his sister from this hostage situation.

* * *

-Li Ying-

And what the dear wife in the middle of this? What say does she have? Not surprisingly, she doesn't know what is going on. It's probably for the best. Ivan prefers to keep it that way.

Li Ying is still adjusting to her surroundings. It's been a year, but she still feels out of place. She cries less now and appears to be less numb about her misery. The young housewife has started to come out of her room more often. The only people she will talk to is her brother and older sister-in-law. But, the girl still won't smile. Ivan gives her nice presents and doesn't try to push her sex. However, the situation hasn't changed. She won't smile. She accepts the gifts with apathy.

Ivan wanted to help her, but didn't know how to deal with a woman's affections. He turned to Katyusha for help.

"I'll see what I can do," she said as her big boobs bounced. "Dear brother, you just aren't good with dealing with a woman when she is upset."

"Thank you," Ivan said. "Actually, there is other reason I need your help with her."

"You don't want her to find out about your ties with Vozrozhdeniye, am I right?" Katyusha asked. Her brother opened his mouth, but she put her finger to it.

"You didn't think I knew, did you?" she asked. "I've known for quite some time. Why else would you be going to Ikebukuro every year? I figured it wasn't to sight see. So, I did a little digging around. Don't worry, I won't tell your wife or anyone about what you are doing. I will just try and make Li Ying happy, okay?" Ivan reluctantly drew his mouth closed as he slowly nodded. Katyusha drew back her finger.

"Very good," she said. Ivan stared at her with big eyes as she walked up the stairs to look for Li Ying.  _Somehow, I just made it all worse_ , Ivan thought.

But at least he may help his wife in this way.

Outside, Wang Ja had his ear pressed to the door.


	18. Hauntings

Match Eighteen: Hauntings:

Despite the happy moments going on with Florence in his life, Alfred felt left out about what's going on around him. He tried calling Arthur several times, but he wouldn't pick up. Everyone else looked uneasy. Even his jokes were dead in the water to cheer up his ally friends.

"Come on, guys!" he said. "Cheer up!" The three men looked up at him with no emotion in their eyes. Yao's mind was elsewhere with a calendar in his phone. Ivan had been writing down something when the American man spoke up. Francis looked like a worried mother. The glow from Alfred's face instantly died.

"Okay, what's the matter?" he asked. "Where is Britain?" The three men didn't want to speak. Francis looked away.

"He's sick today," he lied. Alfred tilted his head.

"He's been doing that a lot lately," he said. The American man wasn't born around the time the Woman in Red roamed the earth. Arthur pleaded with the allies to keep it that way.

"He can't know the truth behind this mess," he said before Hecate trapped him. "I want to end this before he finds out." The other allies agreed.

"Yeah," Francis said. "It's been really bad."

"Well… We should go and visit him," the American man said.

"No!" the Frenchman was quick to say. Alfred gave him a strange look.

"Why not?" he asked. Francis nervously looked at his hands.

"He won't let anyone see him," he said in a low voice.

"What?" the American man asked.

"Leave it alone," Ivan said. Everyone looked up at the Russian man.

"We can't do anything for Arthur at this time," he said. "He's not going to answer the phone if we tried to call him and he won't let us in."

"What am you saying?" Alfred asked. "We just can't leave him. He needs our help!"

"And what can we do for him?" the Russian man asked. The American man's mouth hung open for a moment. He tried to speak, but no words came out.

"My thoughts exactly," Ivan said. He sat back down in his chair and returned to his notes.

"I'm afraid I will have to agree," Francis said. Yao nodded his head. Alfred looked around, but said nothing. The rest of the meeting felt isolating.

* * *

Alfred just couldn't leave it alone. Arthur was part of the team. Sure he was condescending, a bad cook, weird with his talking to himself, and pompous as hell, but he was like family to the American man. And he needed serious help.

He stopped by Arthur's flat. Alfred pounded on the door.

"Arthur!" he shouted. "Dude! Come on, it's me! Open up! I want to see how you are doing!" The American man happened to look and see a face peeking out from the curtains. Alfred ran over when the face disappeared.

"Hey!" he shouted. The American man tapped on the window.

"Come on!" Alfred said. "I know you're in there! Come out! I just want to talk to you!" When he touched the glass again, a cold shock ran through his body. His vision clouded up as he began breathing heavily. When he stepped back, he began to see strange things.

New York in the 1990's.

There was a high school gym. He could see a ball game in progress, most likely basketball. Many high schooler clichés were there. The cheerleaders looked like Barbie dolls. The basketball players could put elks to shame with their swift and graceful movements on the court. A blonde boy about fifteen years old stood off to one corner in the gym. He looked like he hadn't eaten in days. His clothes hung off of his body.

_What is this?_

A gnawing feeling clawed at his stomach. Alfred could feel himself starting to throw up. He covered his mouth and turned and ran away.

He wasn't the only one.

-Arthur-

England in the 1980's.

He would do anything for a score. He sold himself for drugs. His addict started out with disillusionment with his mother country. England was changing in ways he didn't like. Maggie Thatcher made life worse for the middle class. The youth became unruly and dissatisfied with their lives. Some turned to dangerous ways to cope.

At the time, he was a lonely youth. Parents wrapped up in their own drama neglected his emotional needs. He had to keep calm and keep on just like his fellow Britons did. But deep down inside, he wanted to scream. He needed a way to get out his frustrations. By the summer of 1985, he started down a dark path.

There was a girl he liked. Her parents were hippies that forgot the sixties were over. It felt like a dream the way she paid attention to him. What would she want with a lonely punk like him? Part of him believed that it was a prank at his expensive. Not a prank, a foul temptress.

She invited him out to a party one night. No adults were going to be there. Just her, a few friends from Manchester, and him. He was excited to go. So, he snuck out of the house and met up with the hippie girl in downtown London. They made it to her house. At the time, he felt numb and wanted something to feel whole. She gave him that feeling, but soon it wasn't enough. His girlfriend showed up a more dangerous way to feel complete.

Her friends were playing a game at the time. One that involved needles and spoons. He had heard of drugs before and was told never to do them. But, his teachers were never clear on that sort of thing on what to do in a real situation. One man with long brown hair looked up at him.

"Want a hit?" he asked. The younger man looked around. This was wrong, but he wanted to impress his girlfriend.

"Yes," he said. The friends invited them into their circle. They had to help get ready for the first hit. The first shot led to a bad to trip. The room began to spin. He could feel the bile traveling up his throat. His eyes began to burn. The young man ran out of the room, thinking he was going to die. He couldn't remember what happened to him for the rest of that night.

-Francis-

France in the 1960's.

Paris was renowned for its beauty. But, he didn't see it that way. He stood out on the streets again. Violation forced him to live this way. He did not ask for this. He was innocent, in fact. Up until he was fifteen, he lived with a poor family in the countryside. They were so poor that they could barely eat. Still, the family all loved each other.

That's when that perfumed man in black came along.

This man promised to give the boy's mother a better life for her and her sons. She was drawn into his lies. In reality, the perfumed man in black only wanted her beautiful son. The boy could tell just by the hidden hungry look in the man's eyes.

_I don' like this man._

One night, that perfumed man in black crept into that boy's room. He covered his mouth and made him not to promise not to tell a soul. The boy only obeyed out of fear. That night, his "training" began.

Today, he was on the streets looking for another client to entertain for the long, soul-killing night.

-Matthew-

Canada in the 1990's.

He peeked out of the cracks of the closet door. What time of day was it? It looked like it could be morning. But it could be night too. How long had he been here? The house had been quiet for so long that it scared him. That was the only time that he knew he was alone. When was she coming back? Would this be the time that she never came back? It would surprise him if she did. His mother disappeared for days at a time. When she did come home, she would in the company of a new man. Both of them practically ignored him.

The house itself was in desperate need of repair. The wallpaper all but fell off. The rest of the walls needed new paint. Cigarette burns covered the old worn out carpets. It was always had to walk over the wooden floors without stepping on beer cans or broken glass. There always was almost no food. No children's toys. He couldn't remember the last time he had a bath. But, the house itself smelt worse than he did. On top of that, his mother had stop paying the bills a long time ago. He couldn't remember what indoor night looked like.

He froze when he heard footsteps. Was she coming home at last? Her laughter in the room told him yes. He pulled his knees to his chest. She wasn't alone today.

-Ivan-

Russia in the 1950's.

He heard voices. They yelled at him to hurt himself and others around him. But, he didn't want to any hurt anybody. He didn't know how he turned out like this. He used to be so normal. But he had seen so much that it broke him down? Or was it inside of all along and it didn't choose to surface until now?

The voices in his head wouldn't shut up. He tried everything to make them stop. He had the bruises, burns, and scratches on his body to prove it. The police found him wandering around in the streets with no shoes, dirty clothes, and carrying a metal bat. They decided that he was too dangerous to be out in the Russian public. So, they put him in a place far, far away from the rest of society.

Now, he sits on a bed surrounded by white walls. His mind is miles away with his eyes so vacant. He barely eats or sleeps. The voices didn't leave him, but he became used to them while was staying here. Still, he's not alone.

He looked up when the door opened. She's back again.

-Yao-

China in the 1930's.

His family was so poor that they sent him to the city to work. But he was only ten years old. It didn't matter to the chef that he worked for. The child had to wish the dishes, clean the floors and kitchen tools, and go pick out the ingredients for the meals. He slept in the kitchen because he didn't have anywhere else to go. He wasn't the only working however. Ten other little boys and girls worked in this restaurant with him. Sometimes the chef was kind, but other times he had quite a temper.

There was something shady about this restaurant. Everyone in the city knew it, but they didn't say anything. The police were more likely than not to be corrupt and besides, what was the proof. The children were either too desperate or scared to speak up. He couldn't say anything because his family needed the money. His little sister was sick back in their village and his mother was dying. But would it be all worth his short little life?

What he didn't know at the time was the restaurant was drowning and couldn't keep up anymore. The chef himself had cooked up a scheme to cut his losses and get some of his money back that he owned from his gamble debts.

-Alfred-

Alfred had just come home when he noticed the little girl with the Hello Kitty backpack sitting on his front steps.

"It's you," he said. The little girl broke into a huge smile.

"I get to go home today!" she said.


	19. Struggle, Trying, and Fire

Match Nineteen: Struggle, Trying, and Fire:

-Ju-

There were no results. I know it takes time, but I'm starting to get antsy. Part of me just wants to get this over with. The clan mothers have backed off a bit, but I can tell that they are still cheering me to get pregnant already. But, I'm having another problem on my hands. No, not my uncle and Junjie. There is  _another_  problem.

Yao's been acting more withdrawal lately. I tried to ask him what was wrong, but he won't tell him. I don't think he doesn't want to, but more like he doesn't know how to.

"If you need an ear, I'm right here for you," I said. Yao just pulled me into his arms and nodded. I don't really know what's going in his mind right now. There's been too much going on for me to process.

I hope he can focus tonight.

"Will you be okay tonight?" I asked him as I was heading home.

"Yes," Yao insisted over the phone. His tone didn't sound so convincing to me.

"Did you have the juice that Fei suggested?" I asked.

"Of course I did," he said.

"Good, good," I said.

"Did you eat all of the foods that Bik instructed you to?"

"Yes, yes."

"Good."

"I'll be home soon."

"Okay, I love you."

"Love you too." I hung up just as the bus pulled up. Instinct told me to keep an eye on Yao's well-being.

* * *

-8:00 p.m.-

What did I want to entice him with tonight? Naughty schoolgirl? Dirty little maid? I opened a drawer on my side of the chest. A flash of pink lace caught my eye. Hm? I picked up the object in question. The top was white silk with thin pink spaghetti straps. I stared at the bow at the chest. I looked at the odd, blended pattern on all sides of it. How long have I had this? When did I get this? Who gave this to me? I turned to over again. It looks really cute. Can I still where this? I wondered if pants came with it.

I took a look through the drawer. I never realized I had this many clothes in this drawer alone. I think I could open a small clothing store with them. I pushed that thought aside and dug deeper. Come on, there had to be pants to this somewhere. Maybe they are in another drawer. I took a minute and dove back in. I paused when I saw pink lace. Ah-ha! Here they are! The cuffs flare out at the bottom and the top was draw string. I took a moment to admire the pattern. Looks like I have winner tonight. I had to go and try it on. Private fashion show time!

After changing clothes, I modeled around in the mirror on out closet door. I look good! Yao's definitely going to love this! Suddenly, the doorbell rang.

"Coming!" I shouted. I dashed down the stairs to the front door.

"Who is it?" I asked.

"Yao," my husband said. My heart little flips in my chest. I straightened myself up before I opened the door. I licked my lips when I saw him standing outside and broke into a little cat-like smile.

"Good evening, dear," I greeted him. "Can I interest you in a night cap?" Yao whistled as he looked her up and down.

"When did you get those?" he asked. I giggled.

"Oh, I just found these in my side of the chest," I said. "You like?"

"Yes," he was quick to say. I walked up to him and put my arms around his neck.

"Would it look better on me or the floor?" I asked. I kissed him on the lips. His left hand grabbed me on the ass. I squealed at his lips.

"Oooo!" I said. "I take it as you would like to see these on the floor." Yao scooped me into his arms and carried me back to our room. I kissed him on the neck the whole way.

* * *

I dropped back on the bed. I could see that Yao was ready to pounce on me.

"Where do you want to start—the top or the bottoms?" I asked. He smirked as he chuckled at me. Yao grabbed onto my pants and untied them.

"Ooo, you go for the pants first," I said. "Pretty bold tonight, aren't you?" He kissed me on the abdomen. My toes curled as my pants came down to my ankles.

"No underwear?" he asked.

"Thought it would be more fun for you to have more access that way," I said. Yao yanked off my pants and threw them aside. I smiled at the good night that we would be having. My husband sat up and took off his shirt. I still can't get over how muscled his body can be under his clothes. I had to swallow back my drool.

"Fingers or tongue?" he asked.

"Your choice," I said. His hand inched up my thigh, slightly pushing it apart. I leaned up to kiss him. Yao gently pushed me back down. His fingertips reached my lower lips. I moaned at the first touch. My hips started bouncing before he could go inside. Yao used his free hand to push my top up. I lifted my arms to help him get it off. He pushed my thighs wider apart as my top joined the rest of the clothes on the floor.

"Are you going to finish getting undressed?" I asked in between short gasps. Yao quickly kissed me on the lips.

"I'm working on that, dearest," he said. I whimpered as he withdrew his hand. My husband smirked as he untied his pants. I could see how excited he was just by looking at his boxers.

"How long have you had that waiting for me?" I asked. Yao moved his hand back between my legs.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" he asked. I gulped and pressed my lips together.

"Yes, actually," I said. Yao gently put his finger to my lips.

"Well then," he said. "I guess I will have to show you." I giggled before he kissed me. His boxers were the last thing to go. I threw my arms around his neck. It didn't take long for us to try and conceive again. I stuck to my guns about enjoying the hell out of the process. No babies were allowed here. Just enjoy the fun process that comes with conception. I threw back my head and moaned.

"I love you, Yao!" I screamed. I closed my eyes and moved my hips to allow deeper penetration. But then, I heard screaming. Not a pleasurable type of scream. Yao sounded like he was in pain. I opened one eye. Was he… crying?

"Yao?" I asked. "What's the matter?" I had never seen him looking so deep in despair. His lips trembled as he froze over me.

"Yao?" I asked. "Yao?" He climbed off of me and huddled over in the corner. I leapt off of the bed and ran over to him.

"Yao? Yao?" I asked. "What's wrong?" I tried to shake his shoulder, but he drew his knees to his chest.

"The fire! The fire!" he wailed. "The fire is going to kill us all!"

"What?" I asked. "What are you talking about?" My husband froze and turned to me. The color had drained from his face.

"Ju?" he asked.

"Is… something wrong?" I asked. Yao pushed me aside and wandered out of our room. I rushed over to the doorway. What was he talking about? What fire? Part of me wanted to run after him, but what would I say? I didn't know how to ask him out right without freaking him out even more. He looked like he didn't know what he was talking. I sank to my knees and rubbed the back of my head.

* * *

The next morning, I sat at the dining table, waiting. I looked up with Yao walked into the room. He gave me a strange look.

"You're up early," my husband said. "I thought you didn't have class today."

"I don't," I said. "I wanted to ask you something." Yao raised his eyebrow. I leaned forward on the table.

"What happened to you last night?" I asked. He gave me a confused look.

"Huh?" Yao asked.

"We were getting really hot and steamy last night," I said. "But then you freaked out on me and walked out. You were yelling something about a fire killing us." Nothing seemed to be connecting in his brain as I spoke.

"Is any of this ringing any bells to you?" I asked. Yao slowly shook his head side to side.

"No," he said.

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"Yes," my husband said. I took a moment to think about it. I was right on him not knowing what he was talking about last night.

"Did something happen?" Yao asked. I lifted my head.

"Hm?" I asked.

"What happened to me last night?" he asked. I forced myself to smile as I waved him off.

"Don't worry about it," I lied. "I will look for the answer myself."

"Hm?"

"Say, are you doing anything today?"

Yao thought about it before he pulled out his phone. "Let's see, we do have that lunch meeting at noon."

"And after that?" I asked.

"I think we're free until that community dinner," he said.

"Okay," I said. "Let's go on a quick date between those two times." My husband gave me a strange look.

"Will we have time?" he asked. I couldn't help but smile.

"Oh we can make time," I said. "And we don't need sex to have a good time." Yao broke into a small smile.

"I think we can do that," he said. I giggled to myself. Maybe, that was just a passing thing. I didn't believe it myself, but my mind wouldn't let me think about it for today.


	20. Donkey Boy Meets Butterfly Girl

Match Twenty: Donkey Boy Meets Butterfly Girl:

Having successfully hooked Hen-to up with Bik, it was time to find Fei a date too. In Khai's eyes, Fei wasn't as brash and complicated as Hen-to. But, he wasn't stupid either. He probably had a close about his plans to marry him and Hen-to off just to have Daiyu all to himself.

He resolved to try anyway.

Khai walked up to the Song House and knocked on the door.

"Coming," Fei mumbled from inside. Khai waited patiently. This was the perfect time to get the "Donkey Boy" as he mentally nicknamed him. When Hen-to was around, Fei was more likely to follow his lead just to avoid conflict. Divide and conquer. Khai looked up when the door opened. Fei stood in his sleepwear, rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning!" Khai greeted him with a smile. Fei narrowed his eyes.

"Boss?" he asked. "What are you doing here? What time is it?"

"Time for you to be up," the clan leader said. "Anyway, I just stopped by to talk. Can I come in?" Fei narrowed his eyes at him.

"Okay…" he said. The man moved aside and the clan leader inside. Khai knew that once he was inside, the plan could proceed as fit.

* * *

Now for the girl. She had to be of decent class and social standing. Bik was in med school after all. What shall Fei's match be? Khai spend eight weeks looking for the right girl The first two were a bust. He didn't want to go for a rich, spoiled princess. But a girl from the streets was out of the question. Khai rubbed his forehead.

"Are my expectations too high?" he wondered. Nah, he was probably looking in the wrong place. He turned to Hen-to and Bik for help. At first, he wasn't too keen on the idea.

"Why are you asking me to help you get Fei a date?" he asked.

"Uh… well… he's going to need someone to settle down with," Khai lied. He forced himself to say that with a straight face. Hen-to looked at him with a flat expression on his face.

"You just want Daiyu to yourself," he muttered under his breath.

"Excuse me?" Khai asked. Hen-to forced himself to smile.

"I'll be happy to help," he lied. What he really wanted to say was, "I'm onto you. You are not fooling us. You're lucky you're finding good women for us." The man did say it of course, in his head. Khai bowed his head.

"Thank you so much," he said. Hen-to frowned.

"Where do we start?" he asked. That first night got Khai a little bit further than he thought he could alone. By the end of week three, the search was narrowed down to ten girls. Five by week four. Then two by week seven. Khai looked at the photograph on his desk.

"Hm," he said. Hen-to took a look at the picture with him.

"She looks cute," he said. Khai looked at the background of their candidate.

"She comes from a nice family," he said. "Decent grades, smart, and in the middle class." The clan leader smiled as he made up his mind.

"I think we have a winner for Fei," he said. Next came the meeting and set up. The clan leader decided to look in a sensible place. He found out that his woman of choice for Fei worked in the public library as volunteer during that summer. The children's section to be exact. Khai straightened up his clothes before going inside.

The library had just opened for the morning. Khai walked in as the employees and volunteers were getting everything ready for the day. His eyes scanned for the children's section. He spotted one of the librarian's behind the desk.

"Excuse me," he said. The middle-aged woman looked up.

"Can I help you?" she asked.

"Ah yes," Khai said. "I have never been to this library before and I want to check it out. I wanted to start out with your children's section. Could you point out where it is to me?" The librarian gave him a blank stare.

"Sure," she said. "It's over that way." She pointed to her left.

"Oh, thank you," the clan leader said, bowing. He turned and headed into that direction. He spotted his target woman shelving books in the toddler section. She looked just like she did in the photograph. Khai smiled to himself and walked over to the woman.

"Excuse me," he said. The woman looked up just as she was picking up more books.

"Yes, can I help you?" she asked. The clan leader cleared his throat.

"Good morning," Khai said.

"Good morning," the volunteer said back. He bowed with grace.

"My name is Liao Khai," the young man said. "And you are…?" The young woman blinked at him at first.

"Oh…" she said. "I'm Fok Cai."

"Nice to meet," Khai said.

"Nice to meet you too," Cai said. Khai smiled to himself. He managed to ease her into conversation until the first patrons walked into the library. The clan leader had his target and already began planning out the date for Song Fei.

Let's see what happens next.

* * *

-Day of the First Date-

"You don't have to do this, you know?" Hen-to said as he straightened Fei's tie. His old friend looked him in the eye.

"Should I cancel?" he asked. Hen-to sighed.

"I guess it would be too late to cancel," he said. "Look buddy, you don't have to rely on to guide you along in life." Fei tilted his head.

"When have I ever done that?" he asked.

"Since we were kids," Hen-to said. "You've all looked to decide where went and what we would do."

"That's because you knew what to do among our circle," Fei said. "You were our leader."

"Who decided that?"

"It just happened that way."

Hen-to sighed. "Never mind. Just decide what you want to do from now on, okay?"

"Okay…" Fei said. His old friend smacked him on the back.

"Good luck, man," Hen-to said.

"Ow," the other man said under his breath.

* * *

Fei was to meet his date at the local library. Khai told him that she worked here as a volunteer.

"She'll get off early today," he said. "You have to meet her at the front entrance at noon." Fei looked at his watch. Just a little bit early. Okay, this could work out. He took a deep breath. Act natural and treat her nicely. Fei nodded to himself.

_I can do this._

"Excuse me," a woman's voice said. The young man turned his head. A woman about his age glanced up at him. Her long white flowing skirt came down to her ankles. Her light blouse clung to her torso. She nervously looked at her hands. Fei raised his eyebrow.

"Can I help you?" he asked. The woman shuffled her feet for a bit.

"Are you Song Fei?" she asked. Her cheeks turned light pink.

"Uh…" she said. "My name is Fok Cai. I believe I am your date today." Fei stared her with big eyes.  _Wow!_  He could've sworn that he heard angels singing. The young man cleared his throat.

"Nice to meet you," he said. Cai bowed back.

"Same to you," she said. Fei held out his arm.

"Shall we go?" he asked.

"Oh… Okay," Cai said. She took hold of his arm. The couple began walking down the street. His date looked so beautiful under the gentle sunlight. Was it possible for a woman to have such fair skin? Fei took in a slow breath. He had to blink several times. No, this was really happening.  _Don't screw this up. You've only gotten started. Don't panic. Relax. This is only the first date and you've just met._  Fei smiled and turned to his date.

"Right," he said. "So where do you want to go?"

"I'll go where you want to go," she said. Her date whistled to himself. Hen-to told him to be his own man for a change. Maybe Khai did this for Fei to do so. The young man smiled to himself.

"You know," he said. "There is this little bistro I always wanted to check out. Have you eaten yet?"

"No," Cai said.

"Excellent," Fei said. "I think you're going to like it." The pair rounded the corner.

* * *

-Present Day-

Cai, Fei, and Kee all sat at the kitchen table eating dinner. Fei peeked up at his wife. A little smile came onto his face. Cai happened to look up and catch a glance.

"What is it, dear?" she asked. Fei shrugged his shoulders.

"Oh, nothing," he said. The man put down his chopsticks. "Thank you for dinner." Fei picked up his bowl and walked into the kitchen. Cai sat, blinking. Kee didn't even look up as he rolled his eyes.


	21. Oiwa

Match Twenty-One: Oiwa:

Now, Kiku feels the pain in his spine. It felt like claws scratched out of his back. He sat over his tub, gripping the edge. The Japanese man took in heavy breaths as sweat came over his body. He could sleep or stand up straight. This new pain started back three weeks ago. It started at the base of his spine. When the pain started, his wrists and ankles went numb. His hands shook as they began cold. Kiku could barely hold things anymore.

What is this?

Massage and ice packs weren't helping. Sena had to help him into bed. By day three, the pain started traveling up Kiku's spine. He looked like an old man hunched over. A cane couldn't help with his balance either. Touching the handle alone would cause the black on his hands to flare up. It didn't help that she was in the background again.

Her deep red nails caressed his chest. Kiku looked behind him out of the corner of his eye. Those black eyes still haunted him no matter how many times he saw them. She was nothing but a yuki-onna. He shivered at the image of her taking pieces of his soul and grinding it with her teeth like a beast chewing on the bones. That vile woman wrapped her arms around him from behind.

"Do not worry," she purred in his ear. "This pain will not last long. Think of this like a wedding gift." This vile woman dug her claws deeper into him. She wouldn't be satisfied until she turn him apart from the inside out. He hated to think what she could to Sena next. His wife hadn't experienced the horror of the Woman in Red yet.

"Please leave me alone," he whispered. She kissed him on the nape.

"No know that isn't possible," she said. "You and I are like a couple to be wed." The pain is his spine increased to the core of the bone. He sucked in a mouthful of air. But, every part of him froze when another image took over his mind. This one, he hadn't even seen before. This couldn't be her doing. No, this was different.

* * *

-Feudal Japan-

He was fifteen and a disappointment. His brothers and sister led successful lives. The oldest son was to be next head of their noble clan. The middle was a powerful samurai general. Even the daughter was to marry another heir to a noble clan to make their family stronger. But their youngest son?

Oh boy.

The youngest son never had any ambitions for his future. He looked attractive, but that's all he had going for him. He had no interest in war, politics, or education. He stayed locked away in his room for most of his days. The servants and his family couldn't get him out. Gossip floated around the youngest son. The parents would sometimes pretend that he didn't exist. They would make up stories about him when they asked about their youngest son.

"He's away in the capital studying," they would say. But, all of the nobles saw through their lies and continued to talk. The parents became desperate to repair their broken image of their youngest son. They decided to marry him off to save their reputation.

The bride had to be beautiful, elegant with manners, intelligent, and a dutiful wife. The list for this mission proved to be asking too much in this given situation. Initially, the search wasn't fruitful. No noble families would allow their daughters to be married off to the disgrace of a son. Having a poor bride would make things worse. In the end, they had no choice but to look for a poor wife.

The older nobleman went into the countryside to look for a bride. Every day, he traveled from village to village with his search. Most of the women were either old ladies or too young. The young women were already married off. The older nobleman didn't want to have to marry off his son to a really young girl. He pushed that to the back of his mind. The older nobleman vowed to either find his son a wife or restore family's honor with his life.

On the last day, he stopped off at a small shop in an isolated fishing village for something cool to drink. When he went inside, he leaned over the straw counter, frowning. The owner narrowed his eyes.

"Is there something wrong, my lord?" he asked. The older nobleman sighed and rubbed his forehead.

"Where do I begin?" he asked. "What do you have for me to try?"

"What do you have?" the nobleman asked.

"Soy milk mostly."

"I'll take that." He set out his money on the straw counter. The shop owner served him up the cold milk. The nobleman downed it in one gulp.

"Now talk to me," the shop owner said. "What is on your mind? What do you desire most?" The nobleman lowered his porcelain cup.

"I'm looking for a bride for my son," he said. "He's been such a disgrace to the family. I just want to save our honor before it's too late." The shop owner gave him a sympathetic smile.

"Good luck with that sir," he said. "We don't have many young maidens left anymore." The shop owner paused for a moment. "Although…" He shook his head.

"No, that would be a bad idea to say," he said. The older nobleman's ears perked up.

"What?" he asked. The shop owner rubbed his forehead.

"And now I've said too much," he said. The old man took in a deep breath.

"It can't be helped," he said. "You didn't hear this from me. But, there is one maiden who isn't married yet in the outskirts of this village." The nobleman stared at him with big eyes.

"Is that right?" he asked.

"Yeah, but I would stay away from her if I was you."

"Why is that?"

"Well… You can go by the hut outside of this town and see for yourself."

"Is she lame?"

"No, nothing like that. She's quite the beauty, in fact."

"Does she have any illness?"

"No."

"Then… what's wrong with her?"

The shop owner shook his head. "Nothing, you would just have to see it for yourself." That should've been a hint to back out while he still had the chance. But, desperation has strange powers over a person like that.

She was supposed to be his wife. She came from a poor family. Sure, she was very attractive in this small fishing village. She only lived with her father. Her mother died in childbirth. Now, her father was starting to die too. Or that's what she told everyone in the village. They saw her around town, but kept their distance. They had their own reasons. She had dreams of a better life. Lucky for her, she would soon get her wish.

She had just come home from the market when she found the nobleman waiting at her door. At first, she looked so confused.

"Excuse me," she said. "Can I help you?" The nobleman took one look at him and smiled.

"Yes," he said to himself. "You will do just fine."

"Huh?" she asked. The nobleman walked up to her and licked his lips.

"Yes!" he said. "You will be the one to save my family's honor!" She didn't understand what he was getting at.

"What are you talking about?" she asked. The old man looked her straight in the eye.

"How would you like to get out of this village for a better life?" he asked. Her eyes grew wide at that question. Was she hearing right? Did this man offer a way out? She wanted to scream for joy for this opportunity opening up in front of her.

"What's the catch?" she asked. He took her by the hands.

"Please marry my son," he said. "He's really attractive and a strong provider." Obvious lies, but the nobleman was desperate at this point. His bride potential bride smiled.

She and the youngest son were married about a month later. The parents threw the couple a lavish wedding. The bride and groom looked somber out of respect. However, she would end up bringing the family more misfortune than luck as the parents hoped forward.

* * *

-Present Day-

The vile woman could feel Kiku shaking.

"What was that just now?" he asked. She rested her head against his back.

"That was you," she said. "You in a past life. That man looking for your bride was your father." Kiku shook his head.

"No… No…" he muttered.

"Oh yes." Her nails dug into his chest. "You aren't the only one to see your past life. The other countries are starting to see the truth for themselves. But, you don't have the whole picture just yet." She licked him the cheek. Usually, Kiku would push anyone off for invading his personal space. But, she had him frozen. The vile woman smirked.

"Do you want to hear something?" she asked.

"No!" Kiku said trembling. That vile woman giggled.

"The fifth gate will be located," she said. "Only three more to go, dearest. But, I have already left you another wedding present until we consummate our bond." Kiku's eyes widened as another chill ran down his spine.

_No…_ He let out a gagged scream as he threw back his head.

Kanji of blasphemy appeared all the way down his spine.


	22. Puppet Masters

Match Twenty-Two: Puppet Masters:

There are three big parties controlling this game behind the scenes. They all have the same goal: start the apocalypse. They do not like or trust each other. But, they are bonded because of their game. The methods are different, but the end goal is the same. Their respective countries have no say in this game. They have to go along with what their hidden masters have to say. They are just the puppets to the their puppet masters.

They are called Vozrozhdeniye.

Do you remember the Soviet Union. Well, it didn't really go away. It just went underground. A few surviving members banded together and became Vozrozhdeniye. Many people in Russia do not believe they exist. Or rather, they pretend that they don't exist. There are rumors that Putin is the secret leader of the group.

Only Ivan knows the truth.

It's not his choice to be here. His boss insisted that he has to be part of Vozrozhdeniye. It happened about six years ago, maybe even longer. He stopped counting at this point. The big Russian man just went with it to humor his boss. To his credit, he did try to help out members of the group. Speaking of which, they all worshiped science. These weren't some thugs left over from the fallen Soviet Union either. These eight men and two women had PhD's in science, math, and psychology. Impressive records if Ivan could say so himself. That still didn't excuse them from this madness they were trying to pull.

He looked at each one in the closed club house tonight. Alexander, Adrik, and Karp were the first three members the leader recruited. They all came from the same university, in fact. Lomonosov Moscow State University delivered some of the finest minds to come out of Russia. The leader was quick to capitalize on such potential. Ivan laughed to himself on that thought. Heh, capitalize. He digressed.

Except for Katerina and Karp, the rest of the members didn't interact with each other outside of work. That didn't stop Ivan from trying to get to know who he was stuck working with.

Alexander Turov specialized in microbiology. The leader recruited him second to join Vozrozhdeniye. At twenty years old, Alexander wanted to take his skills beyond what he was limited to do. Their leader opened the door for that to happen when he showed them the film of the experiments on Midori. When he first laid eyes on the second generation of tadpoles, he had to find out more about them. These could be the perfect evolution of the human race.

"They would even be the perfect soldier in war!" he said. It too upsets him that Tandeki won't give over the tadpoles for them to do their own experiments on. Alexander still has his plans for the tadpoles. He even started planning out which drugs he wanted to use on Kitano's beloved pets. Tonight, he reads over his notes to get the formulas just right.

Adrik Wowk specialized in abnormal psychology. He was a grad student at the time. He wanted a better life for himself. Adrik grew up poor and bored. Growing up, the young man had the mental skills and wits to do so. He began working at a series of part-time jobs to save up money to go to college. No standard old university would do it. Adrik wanted to get into Lomonosov Moscow State University. His father belittled him for his ambitious dreams. It all became motive for the young man to prove him wrong. Adrik saved up his money and kept working to stay in school. It was during his grad year was when he met the leader and became the first Vozrozhdeniye recruit.

Karp Zubov specialized in cell biology. He and his wife were part of the same group together. He too attended Lomonosov Moscow State University. Karp came from a rich family. He lived like a prince in St. Petersburg. However, ugly roots hid underneath all that gold and white. His parents were secret communists and well-known in the secret meeting circles. It was rumored that they supported to Stalin. (Karp and Katerina were starch Putin supporters.) When the Soviet Union fell, the family didn't fall with it. You see, the parents were always looking ahead when it came to their eight kids. They were determined not end up in the streets.

Their teaching lay deep with their son. Karp was smart enough to keep his views to himself. He used his charms to get through his school years. Many girls wanted him, but he kept his focus on school and his secret political views. That's right, he didn't betray his communist roots his parents planted within him. It was during a communist meeting at the college that he met the leader.

Kenya Sepols specialized physics and mathematics. He didn't go to Lomonosov Moscow State University. But, he was still a prodigy from the age of ten. Kenya went through several tutors for different subjects. He finally stuck with music at the age of twelve. At the age of seventeen, the body moved to the city. He worked at a packing plant to help pay his bills. In fact, Kenya was coming home from work when the leader first met him.

Lazar Press specialized in chemistry. He came from eastern Russia. The man worked a pharmacist. Other than that, Ivan couldn't find much more information about Lazar. The taller Russian man didn't feel the need to ask anyway. Just leave Lazar be and let his work do all of talking. It's worked out just fine over the past four years he had worked here.

Boris Oleneva specialized microbiology along with Alexander. In fact, they work together on the same branch. Other than tadpoles, Vozrozhdeniye has other ways of playing the game. The people were unaware of what was really going on. Four gates were already opened. Nothing has changed in Russia so far. Fine time to put a panic into the people about the environment. Their health and diets too. For nine months, Boris and Alexander had worked on something for the meat. Ivan and the others weren't allowed to see what it was yet. Even the leader couldn't see what was going to happen next.

Nikita Motova specialized chemical biology. He too has his own branch in the project. This scientist from Moscow wanted to do something with the water. Mainly because he wanted to grab the attention of his colleague, Alisa. Ivan speculated that the two of them had history together, but it wasn't his to ask. After all, he was just supposed to be the muscle of the group. Besides, it was much easier to watch them work from a distance. In fact, Ivan began to find himself curious about what could happen next.

Alisa Sazhin specialized neuroscience and abnormal psychology. The leader made her his right-hand woman about six years ago. Or maybe it was longer. Ivan didn't keep track anymore. Anyway, Alisa seemed to know the leader best. Everyone is trying to pick her brain about who or what he's really like. She's really tight-lipped about the details and pushes everyone back to work. Ivan began to think that Alisa and the leader were one in the same. The Russian could prove it, but chosen not to. Let the events play out. He couldn't wait to see their faces when they learned the truth.

They still have one more member to introduce.

Katerina Zubov didn't have a specialty branch, but her money went into Vozrozhdeniye's activities. Just like her husband, she came from communist roots. So many rumors surrounded this dark beauty. She looked like an angel on the outside, but a pure devil on this inside. Many said that she was a sexual sadist. Some even said that she bought rent boys and abused them to the point that they died of exhaustion. Why did Katerina hang around with her husband's group?

The tadpoles. She looking for something to match her sadist taste. These super beings look like they could outlast her previous partners. How long would those tadpoles last under her games?

And then there is their leader.

They have never seen the leader's face. The group don't even know his real name. He only goes by the name "Fyodor". Only Alisa claims to see his real face. There was a man that went with on their Ikebukuro trips. But, Ivan didn't buy that was the real leader. Why did they feel like they had to hide behind doubles? Ivan started feel that Vozrozhdeniye were being used as puppets for a greater scheme in this game.

Ivan did not like that. But, his boss insists that he work with them anyway. It's too late to back out of the game now. The fifth gate has been found.

* * *

They are called Mam.

Allison Mayfair. She is their mother. Her real age was unknown. Rumor had it that she was as old as the Roman times. Allison has adjusted to the modern world just fine, actually. With her long life, she brought her knowledge and skills of magic with when she moved to England during the reign of Henry VIII. Allison used her charm, skills, and influence to gain wealth and status in England. She had many lovers, but they never produced any children.

The powerful and all-knowing witch took care of that herself.

She made the nightcomers. All of them. Their numbers have dwindled over the years. Today, there are thirteen of them. And they are all in Arthur's flat.

He sits near the front door in a huddled ball. The Englishman can't reach out to Flying Miny Bunny anymore. None of his invisible friends would even come near him. Hecate and her sisters were always at his flat and they didn't want to leave. Whenever he would leave, two of them would nearby following him. He wouldn't be going out tonight. Hecate forbade him to go anywhere. Speaking of which, she put her hands on his shoulders.

"Mother's going to be here any moment now," she purred in his ear. Arthur looked like he would throw up. Hecate and her sisters nightmarish enough. What would their mother be like?

They lived their heads when there was a knock on the door.

"Ah, it's mother!" Lucy said. "I'll get it." She sailed past Arthur and Hecate. The Englishman gulped. They wouldn't let him leave. Once Hecate stuck her claws into him, she was determined to drag him deeper into Mam. This flat became their second headquarters. How bad would their mother be?

Lucy opened the door. Arthur's eyes widened. A woman in a black cloak stood in the doorway.

"Welcome home, mother," Lucy said. The woman walked by her. The other eleven daughters all bowed down. Hecate pushed Arthur's head down. The cloaked woman shook her head.

"Get up," she said. The nightcomers all stood up. Hecate pulled Arthur to his feet. The mother looked around at people in the flat. Her eyes locked onto the Englishman.

"Is this him?" she asked.

"Yes," Hecate said. She shoved Arthur forward. The English man shivered as he was inches away from his abuser's mother. He clenched his teeth. Mam's leader took off her hood. Her wavy brown hair came down to her shoulders. She looked youthful for her age. When he looked into her deep greenish-brown eyes, it was own. The woman stuck out her hand.

"My name is Allison Mayfair," she said. "Nice to meet you." Arthur reluctantly shook her hand.

* * *

They are called Tandeki.

They don't need any introduction. They run everything. Right now, they have the advantage on their side. They have both the tadpoles and the Dis Program. They are smart enough to keep their distance from Vozrozhdeniye and Mam. Grated, Tandeki still needs them both in a way.

Vozrozhdeniye give them money. They need that money to keep Project Tadpole running. In return, every six months, Tandeki have to show the Russians the fruits of their profit. But, Kitano will never sell his beloved pets to them. "Fyodor" offers him money, but the therapist won't budge.

Mam has the nightcomers to open the Gates to the Apocalypse. They have a steady trade relationship going on. Kitano gives Allison useful information to deal with the modern world in England in return. But, do not be fooled by the formalities. Mam also wants the tadpoles for their own agenda. Kitano won't let them have them either.

Tandeki may work well with Vozrozhdeniye and Mam for now. But when the right time comes, they will cut all ties and finish the game themselves.

There are three big parties controlling this game behind the scenes. They all have the same goal: start the apocalypse. They do not like or trust each other. But, they are bonded because of their game.


	23. Twins

Match Twenty-Three: Twins:

-Im Soo-

The cracks are starting to appear on the mask. Im Soo used to be good at hiding his pain. But, this time was different. Something seems to be at stake here. The Korean boy couldn't get his sister's words out of his head. "You have to answer quickly before the Woman in Red is freed and kills us all. You would be better off if you came back with me."

Come back with her and unite the houses? He dreamt of doing that since the 1950's. This time, however didn't feel right. The last time she asked him to come back, Im Soo locked himself in his room for days. His therapist had to talk him to come out over the phone. This time, he didn't know if he could climb out of this. For now, Im Soo would have to pretend that everything was alright. He still smiles and jokes around with his classmates. But even they can see that something is wrong.

"Did something happen?" Jin-ho asked around lunchtime.

"Huh?" Im Soo asked.

"You seem distracted," she said. "Is it your sister again?" The Korean boy was quick to shake his head.

"No," he said. "Of course I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?" His classmate stared at him with a concerned look.

"Please don't self-harm again," she said. Her words made him jump.

"What?" he asked. Jin-ho grabbed him by the hand before he had a chance to pull back.

"Promise me!" she pleaded. Im Soo lowered his eyes.

"Alright," he mumbled. His classmate breathed out.

"Do not go back to that time," she said. "Do not go back there." The Korean boy squeezed her hand.

"Can I tell you something?" he asked.

"What?" Jin-ho asked.

"Not here," the Korean boy said. "Can we go into the gaming club room?"

"Okay," she said. "Right now?"

"Yeah."

"Alright." Jin-ho followed him out of the classroom. The whole time, Im Soo looked like he was walking up to an execution. Jin-ho was an understanding person, but how would she take this? Mi-Soon's own words sounded crazy even to him. How would they sound to someone outside of his and Doctor Ryom's world?

"Jin-ho," he spoke up.

"Yeah," said. Im Soo clenched his fists at his sides.

"Do you promise not to freak out if I tell you what's wrong?" he asked. Jin-ho gave him a strange look.

"Why would I do that?" she asked.

"My sister…" he said. "She seems to have strange ideas."

"What kind of ideas?" his classmate asked. They came to the gaming room. Im Soo let her go inside first. He followed behind and closed the door behind him. The Korean boy looked down at his feet.

"Well…" he said. "My sister is thinks the world is going to end." Jin-ho gave her a strange look.

"What?" she asked. Im Soo rubbed his forehead.

"I don't know how to explain it," he said. He took a deep breath. "It doesn't make any sense at all."

"Try me," Jin-ho said.

"You sure?" her classmate asked.

"I am here for you," she said. It hurt to hear her say that. She didn't need to hear any of this. But, they were here now. Knowing his school friend, Jin-ho wouldn't give up until he told her everything. Im Soo dropped his shoulders.

"Alright," he said. The teenage boy broke down and told her everything.

It was a good thing he had Doctor Ryom on his side. But, something doesn't seem right with her. This evening, Im Soo came by her apartment and knocked on the door. He drew in a deep breath as he waited. The Korean boy looked up when the door opened a crack. A tired eye peeked outside.

"Is it too late for me to be over?" Im Soo asked.

"No," Ryom said in hoarse whisper. Her former patient raised his eyebrow.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"Yes," she whispered. Im Soo blinked uneasily. Instinct told him that something wasn't right. Maybe he should turn around and leave. Im Soo turned when he heard the chain being removed. His jaw dropped when the door opened wide. Doctor Ryom looked like she was about to pass out. Her eyes had heavy bags under them. She trembled as she held onto the frame of the door. The doctor looked like she had lost so much weight. All of the color was drained from her face. Her long black hair looked so dry and about ready to fall out. Any trace of life that was in her eyes had died away.

"Doc?" Im Soo asked. She looked up at him as if she had just woken up from a bad dream.

"Oh," she said. "Im Soo, it's you."

"What happened to you?" he asked. "You don't look so well."

"Oh," she said again. "I'm fine. Come in." Her former patient hesitated. He shoved his hands into his pockets.

"Thank you," the Korean boy mumbled. He bowed his head and walked into the apartment. Doctor Ryom closed the door behind him. As he walked by her, Im Soo could feel that something wasn't right.

-Mi-Soon-

She knows that they have to do this. On the surface, it looks like her home is looking for a war to start. But, that can be way further than the truth. They couldn't speak it, however. Mi-Soon stood in the factory with her mind elsewhere.

"Mi-Soon! Mi-Soon! Mi-Soon!" a man's voice yelled. The Korean girl lifted her head. A fellow factory worker stared her in the face.

"You okay?" he asked. The young girl nodded as she pressed her lips together.

"Yeah, yeah," she said. "I'm fine." The factory worker in his forties gave her a small smack on the head.

"This is for the greater good," he reminded her. "You can't be slacking off on us." Mi-Soon slowly nodded.

"Right," she said. She looked down at the wires in her gloved hands. Another bomb. Mi-Soon started to doubt that any of these were effective anymore. Her boss and the scientists in the factory all agreed. For close to a month, they have been hard at work. But, none of that mattered to Mi-Soon.

She still hadn't gotten an answer from her brother. She wanted to save him from the coming End of Days. It was too late to save Japan, but she could still get South Korea back for protection. Why couldn't he understand that?

"I'm doing this for you," she would say every night. Mi-Soon looked at herself in the mirror. Part of her had been dead inside ever since she and her brother were separated. Many times she wanted to walk over next door and talk to him. But her boss wouldn't allow it. Times had changed and he wouldn't fit in with how they did things now. Im Soo had become too modern. Still, Mi-Soon wouldn't give up on trying to reunite with her older brother. And then, the first gate opened.

To be honest, she was happy that the end was coming. Maybe, this could be the way that they finally get back together. Mi-Soon had wished and prayed for the chance to come. Now that it was here, Im Soo seemed more afraid of her than happy to unite. But, she wouldn't give up. Mi-Soon knew that her words would have to reach him somehow. She would work on the rest of her siblings later, but her brother came first. After all, she was doing this for the greater good.

"I'm doing this for you," Mi-Soon told herself again as she closed her eyes. Why did her boss let the rest of the world believe they were testing missile for a war? Trust her, it was easier that way.

-Brother and Sister-

They are forced to be tied together. Even separated, they can't break the chain holding them together. She won't let him go. Tonight would be no different.

Im Soo came home to find Mi-Soon sitting on his steps. He clenched his fists at his side. Her eyes perked up.

"You came," she said. He wouldn't look her in the eye.

"Hello, Mi-Soon," Im Soo mumbled.

"Will you come with me?" she asked. Her brother looked away.

"Why now?" he asked. "Why do you want us to get back together now? I cried when you were taken away from me. Alfred and everyone else kept us apart." Im Soo's voice trembled as did his body.

"Why are you doing this to me now?" he asked.

"Because I'm trying to save you," Mi-Soon said.

"Save me from what?!" her brother asked with his arms in the air. His sister stood up and walked over to him. She had such a strong grip when she pulled him into her arms. Something in her pretty little smile gave him the creeps.

"From the world ending," his sister said.

"Why would it be ending?" Im Soo asked. The younger twin released him from her grasp.

"Let's hope for your sake that you don't have to find out," she said. Mi-Soon wandered back over to her house. She looked over her shoulder.

"I will keep coming back until you decided to come back to me," the younger twin said. Im Soo's eyes widened as she disappeared into the house. A blade to his skin would probably feel good to his skin right now. The older twin shook his head and forced himself to go into his own house.

-Toxic-

They can't be together. But, she might have a point if this game goes any further. It may be too late to save Japan, but she still has a chance to save South Korea from the impending destruction of the world. Sadly, it would cost him his freedom, sanity, and happiness. Mi-Soon tries to hide her tears. Her boss told her not to cry. They were doing this for the greater good.

"I'm doing this for you," she reminded herself in her darkened bedroom as she stared at her mirror. Tears began to form in her eyes.

"I am doing this for him!" she said again. She clenched her shaking fists. For one second, North Korea could've sworn she saw a demonic red face staring back as her, hissing one word at her.

"Liar."


	24. Tina's Party, Flashbacks, and Failure

Match Twenty-Four: Tina's Party, Flashbacks, and Failure:

-Ju-

Tina's party was on a Saturday. Yao and I stood at the front door of her apartment.

"Dean's a really good guy," I told my husband. "I've met him personally and he's really cool. He doesn't talk much though."

"How did she meet this one?" Yao asked.

"I think she met him at school," I said. I turned and knocked on the door. Tina opened up and greeted us.

"Ju! Yao!" she said. "You've made it!" Tina wildly hugged me as she laughed.

"Hello, Tina," I said. She pulled me inside with Yao following behind.

* * *

When we got inside, a sea of eyes fell on us. She must have invited most of the old gang to this party. Most of the guests were white. As far as I could see, there were only about eight women and thirteen men, including Yao and myself. I think they were from Tina's old school before I met her. I could only recognize two of them. One of them is like named Dave or Dustin while the other one's name escapes me at the moment. I waved at those two and they waved back. I've always thought that Tina has had some weird friends at times. Speaking of which, she jogged over to Dean's side and took him by the arm. He had his eyes slightly downwards.

"Hello, Dean," I said.

"Hi," he mumbled. Still shy as ever. He has become a little bit social with us as of late. I gave him a little wave. Dean just nodded. I wondered who else was here. I happened to look over at the stuffy brown couch. My jaw dropped at who I saw. To my surprise, Qun sat in the living room. She looked up and waved when she saw me.

"Qun!" I said. "How have you been? I haven't seen your face in years!" My old friend stood up and bowed.

"How have you been?" she asked.

"Great," I said. "How has your husband been doing?" I walked over and hugged her.

"It's so good to see you," I said. Tina clapped her hands together.

"Great, everyone's here!" she said. "Let's party!" All of the foreign guys cheered.

I found myself quite surprised how toned down this party was. I've known Tina for years. Her idea of partying was drinking, loud music, scary movies, pigging out, and causing mischief. She's had pot at one or two of her parties before. (I remember one of the guests at those parties tried to get me to smoke a joint. Tina had to turn that guy down for me. I remember her words were, "She doesn't do that kind of stuff.") I looked around the living room with my fruit punch in hand. There was plenty of food and drinking. The music was kept at a low volume. Tina was looking for a movie to put on from her collection. Everyone else looked pretty chill. My guess was Dean wasn't exactly the partying type. In fact, he stayed over my the corner as the party began. I frowned as I walked over to him. Dean looked up from his drink when he heard me coming towards him. I stood inches away from.

"Is everything okay?" I asked in English. He pressed his lips together and nodded.

"Yeah," he said. "I'm fine."

"Partying isn't your thing, is it?" I asked.

"Not really," he said.

"I see." I swirled my cup around as I looked down at the deep red liquid inside. Dean was a nice guy once you got to know him. Tina's trying draw him out of his shell. Sometimes I wondered if she wore him down just like she did with me.

"Tina may be pushy at times, but she is a good person," I said. Dean looked down at me.

"Hm?" he asked. I smiled and shook my head.

"I was just remembering how we first met," I said. "She practically followed me around until I agreed to be her friend. But you know, what? I'm glad I did."

"Yeah," Dean said. I looked up at him.

"I think you two will be just fine," I said.

"You really think so?" he asked. I nodded.

"Yep," I said. "It's worked out for me just fine!" A pair of heavy hands landed on my shoulders. I turned to see a grinning Tina.

"Did I mess anything?" she asked.

"No," Dean and I said.

* * *

Around seven o'clock, we were deep into the third movie of the day. Tina's parties tend to go on until close to midnight. I already I began to plan Yao and my escape. I ran through Tina's party plan through my head again. We're going to watch another movie, eat, drink, another movie, and then just linger on.

I just need to find my husband-person.

I looked through the crowded living room. It didn't help that my only source of light was from the TV. When did this room get so small? Everyone had their eyes fixed on the TV screen. I just needed to grab Yao and slip away before Tina and the other guests noticed. My eyes trailed back to the corner of the darkened room. I caught a brown ponytail disappeared out the back door. A puzzled look came onto my face. Where was he going? I got up and stepped over about five people to get to the back door.

"Excuse me," I whispered. "Excuse me. Excuse me." I made my way to the glass doors to see Yao holding his head outside. He looked like he was in pain. I opened the door and ran outside.

"Yao?" I asked. "Baby, what's the matter?" Yao turned and looked up at me. I backed up when I saw how hollow his eyes looked.

"Honey?" I asked.

"Who are you?" he asked. I blinked at him.

"It's me, Ju," I said. "I'm your wife." Yao stared at me blankly.

"Wife?" he asked.

"Yes," I said. "Are you feeling okay? Did one of boys slip something in your punch?" I reached up to touch his forehead, but he pushed me away.

"Don't touch me!" he cried.

"Baby?" I asked. My stomach turned I watched him suffer. Suddenly, he stopped. Yao looked at me blinking.

"What happened?" he asked. I looked just as confused.

"Do you know who I am?" I asked. He stared at me as he lowered his hands.

"You're Ju," Yao said. "My wife."

I rested my hand to my chest. "Thank goodness. Do you know where you are?"

"Yeah, Tina's party."

"Do you know what day it is?"

"Saturday." My husband gave me a strange look. "Why are you asking me these questions?" I pressed my lips together.

"I saw you rushing out here," I said. "I came to check on you. You looked like you had a really bad headache. Then, you acted like you didn't know who I was." I looked behind us before I turned back to Yao.

"What happened to you?" I asked. My husband shook his head.

"I… I don't know," he said. "I was just watching the movie like everyone else. Suddenly, there was fire on the screen and my mind went blank."

"Fire?" I asked. My mind went back to the night I seduced him with those pajamas. He screamed something about fire then too.

"You said the same thing when I tried to seduce you that night too," I said.

"What?" Yao asked.

"Yao, what's going on?" I asked. He slowly shook his head.

"I don't know…" he said. "I keep seeing flashbacks of fire and I'm trapped."

"Trapped where?"

He looked down at his hands. "A kitchen."

"A kitchen?"

Yao nodded. "I can still smell the spices." He broke down trembling. I rubbed him on the back.

"We'll go home," I whispered. "It's going to be okay." Yao pressed his lips together and nodded. I walked him back into Tina's apartment. I told her that my husband wasn't feeling well and that he needed to go home.

"Call me when you get home," she said.

"Will do," I said. I walked Yao out of the apartment.

* * *

When we got home, I made Yao some bitter green tea. I watched him drink as we sat at the table.

"Better?" I asked. Yao finished his tea and set down his cup.

"Yes," he said.

"Good," I said. My eyes shifted away from him.

"Do you think we should check?" Yao asked. I looked up at him.

"Hm?" I asked.

"The pregnancy test," he said. "Have you noticed anything different about yourself?" I took a minute to think.

"Not really," I said. "The punch was a little bit sour. It might have been expired."

"Do you still want to try?" my husband asked. I raised my eyebrow at him.

"Are you sure you want to do that now?" I asked. "I mean you had a meltdown earlier."

"Please?" he asked. I dropped my shoulders. To be honest, I was kind of wondering if it finally took. I had gotten a bit sick this morning, but I didn't think too much about it.

"Alright," I said. "I bought a pregnancy test yesterday anyway." I noticed the strange look on Yao's face.

"What?" I asked. "The mothers have been asking me for the past three days."

"Right," he said.

* * *

I took the test in my bathroom.

"How long do we have to wait?" Yao asked.

"Three minutes," I said.

"Okay," he said. "I'll time you." I leaned on the toilet and sighed. I started looking around in my bathroom. I lost track of how many times we did it. We followed a strict "pregnancy" diet. I followed an ovulation schedule as Bik set me up on. Cai even took me to the doctor to make sure I don't miscarry. At this point, I wished that I could get pregnant just so that they could stop pressuring. Already, I could feel the anticipation building up in my stomach. Everything is going to change once the baby comes. The clan would have another heir after nine months.

I bit on my lower lip. How can three minutes feel so long?

"Time's up!" Yao said. I stood up and walked out of the bathroom. The anticipation started drumming as I showed him the pregnancy test. But then, it died when we looked down at the results. I sighed and threw back my head.

"Negative," I muttered.

"We'll try again," Yao said. "It's going to be okay." That didn't change the disappointed look on my face. My husband raised his eyebrow.

"What?" he asked.

"It's okay!" I wailed. "I've been off birth control from three months now."

"What did you say?!" Yao asked. "Why? Why didn't you tell me?!"

"Since Bik and the other mothers kept talking me," I said.

"Before we decided to this?"

I nodded as tears started to form in my eyes. "Yes! We keep trying and trying, but nothing happens." I buried my head in my hands as I sank down to the floor. "Oh god!"

"You've been lying to me all this this?!" Yao shouted.

"I'm so sorry," I said.

"What is wrong with you?!" he asked. I lifted my head.

"I don't know!" I wailed. "What if there is something wrong with me?!" I broke down sobbing as Yao pulled me into his arms.


	25. Dads

Match Twenty-Five: Dads:

Just like the clan mothers, the clan dads are just as important to keep their beloved clan going strong. They circle around their wives, children, Ju, and Yao. Today, we focus on their relationships with their children.

-Hen-to-

He takes care of two boys. Well, two boys and a girl to be exact. It started out as one, but then it bloomed into three.

Biao was the first and only born. Bik doted on their son ever since he was a baby. Hen-to felt pretty proud himself. Both new parents had ideas for their son's future.

"He's going to be a doctor when he grows up," Bik declared. Hen-to didn't argue with her. He might have been the man of the house, but the nurse had the final say in the end. Hen-to was quick to learn that right after their first date.

"I am my own woman," Bik told him. "I won't take orders from any man." Hen-to blinked at her.

"Okay…" he said. "Why would you say that?" The nursing student dropped back her head and groaned.

"It's always the same," she complained. "Every man I tried to date ended up trying to control me. They want me to be this meek little housewife. That's just not how I was raised. I want to go into a medical field."

"Okay," Hen-to said. "I'm not going to stop you."

"Huh?" Bik asked. He grabbed her by the shoulders.

"If you want to be a doctor or whatever, do it," the young man said. "That's all you. I will be here to support you." His love interest gave him a strange look.

"Why would you do that?" she asked.

"Do you have to ask?" Hen-to asked. He stayed true to his word from then on. Even with Bik's goal to turn Biao into a doctor. She did make the profession look interesting and engaging for their oldest son. Hen-to even played along when Biao wanted to take care of him when he came down with a cold. Just as long as wife and son were happy.

Chih was next to join. Biao was the one who brought him into their lives. Hen-to was the one who pushed the adoption forward. The four-year-old started out be a little shit. Unruly little terror in the house. Hen-to and Bik didn't give up on him. Their older son wouldn't let them put him back out.

"He's my friend," he would say. "Don't send away my little brother!" It would be cruel to kick the younger child out of the house. Hen-to didn't give up on Chih. He treated the kid just like his own son. Mostly, the kid was confused on the kindness being showered upon him. He spent the first four years of his life on the streets of Beijing. He didn't even know who his parents were. In a way, Biao must have felt sorry for him. Overtime, Chih grew into a nicer kid.

"Can I call you dad?" he asked Hen-to when he was six years old. The man smiled and patted him on the shoulder.

"Sure, buddy," he said. "You are my son too."

Now, Chih was studying to be a prosecution lawyer at China's top law school. Bik wouldn't stop talking about how proud she was of her boys. Hen-to felt the same way.

"Our boys are moving up in the world!" the nurse said. Her husband put his arm around her shoulders.

"Yes, they are," he said.

Bik kind of took in Ju in after her mother died. The nurse always wanted a daughter. She would keep trying until she had one if not for China's One-Child policy. Ju ended up being a surrogate daughter even before Daiyu's death. The lady of the clan got too ill to take care of her own daughter after Ju was born. It fell upon Bik to feed, dress, bathe, and change the child. The nurse didn't mind it.

"It's like we have our on daughter," she said. Hen-to just let his wife be happy. He himself grew fond of the little girl. It was nice to have a girl for a changed compared to three little boys. Come to think of it, Hen-to and Bik tried to help Ju enjoy a normal childhood. Khai focused her on being the heir of the whole clan. She didn't have time for childhood games or television. Ju wasn't even allowed to wear Western-style clothes. Hen-to and Bik would sneak her out of the main house and take her to the park so she could play like a normal child. In a way, the couple shaped her part of her rebellious behavior.

Hen-to is going to have to shower his attention and his protection on another that might be coming into the world pretty soon. The only problem was the pregnancy tests kept turning up negative.

"Maybe you should see a doctor," Hen-to suggested. So, to the doctor Yao and Ju went the next day.

-Fei-

Fei had been through for Cai even through her miscarriages. She so desperately wanted a child. After so many tries, Fei's wife got pregnant. He remembered the day that she told him. She cooked a special little dinner for them both. Cai led Fei into their dining room.

"Aw, you didn't have to do all of this," he said.

"I wanted to tell you something," she said.

"What?" Fei asked.

"Come and see," his wife said. She led him over to the table. When they came over to his seat, Fei happened to look down on the bowl and gasped. Cai's pregnancy test sat positive.

"Wait, you mean…?" he asked.

"Yes!" Cai said. Fei hugged her wildly.

"We have to tell the others right away!" he said.

"Okay," she said. It didn't take long for the calls to spread through all of the adults of the clan. Daiyu was especially happy for her friend.

"Congratulations!" she said. "Biao will have a new friend to play with here." Bik did her best to help take care of the mother-to-be. But sadly, the happiness only lasted for four months.

Cai was out in her garden one morning when she started to bleed. Panicked, she ran into the house and called her husband in the main house.

"Hello?" Khai asked.

"Is my husband there?!" Cai asked, panicked.

"What's wrong?"

"I'm bleeding!"

"Okay, hang on."

Drops of blood started to hit the wooden floor near the kitchen doorway. Tears started to form in Cai's eyes.  _Come on! Come on!_

"Hello?" Fei asked. All he got was screams of pain on the phone. Cai sank down to the floor clutching her stomach.

"Hang on!" her husband said. "I will have the ambulance come and get you!" Cai was too busy screaming to hear him. Her right hand clutch her stomach as she screamed. By the time she and Fei got to the hospital, it was too late. The baby was already gone. Cai lay in bed in tears. Her husband held her in his arms.

"It's okay," he whispered. "It's okay. It will be okay." Cai wept against his chest.

A year later, Cai became pregnant again. Naturally, she got excited. But, she debated about telling anyone at first. What if this child died too? The woman shook her head. She had been following everything to have a healthy child down to the tee. It should be fine, right? About three o'clock, Cai finally got on the phone.

"Honey!" the woman said on the phone. "I'm pregnant."

"Are you sure?" Fei asked.

"Yes," she said. Cai rested her hand to her chest.

"That's great!" her husband said. "Let's go out and celebrate tonight. I'll pick you up in twenty minutes."

"Okay," his wife said. Months of medical care and trying finally paid off. Maybe this child would be born without problems. The couple were a little more quieter on the news this time. Bik did her best to make sure this baby would be born healthy. But four months later, tragedy struck.

This time, it was winter. Cai and Fei were out shopping for new things for the baby. The mother-to-be went into the bathroom and noticed that she was bleeding again. Her screaming drew the attention of security outside. One trip to the hospital later and the baby was dead.

"I'm so sorry," Cai whispered. Fei held in his arms and kissed her on the forehead.

"It's okay," he whispered. "We will keep trying until we have a child of our own." Cai looked up at him with tears in her eyes.

"What if I can't have children?" she asked.

"Don't say that," Fei said. "We will keep trying no matter what. Do you understand me?" Cai sobbed in his arms.

"Do you understand me?" he asked again.

"Yes," his wife whimpered.

"Shhh, very good," Fei whispered.

Another year later, she got pregnant a third time. By this time, Cai became scared.

"What if I lose this one too?" she asked.

"You won't," Fei told her at the table. "We will have this child. I can feel it."

"I don't want to lose another baby," she said in a trembling voice to her husband. He patted her on the head.

"It's okay," Fei told her. "This one will be just fine. Our baby's going to grow up healthy and strong."

"You think so?" she asked.

"I know so," he said. His wife forced herself to smile and nod along with his enthusiasm. She rested her hands on her stomach.

Like the last two times, Bik saw to all of Cai's needs. Fei stayed optimistic, but his wife was always on edge. He did his best try and calm her down.

"Stress is not good for the baby," Fei reminded her. He would rub on her stomach and kiss her neck. Despite two miscarriage scares, Kee was born healthy. Despite him being lazy and a bit of a pain at times, Fei and Cai loved him with all of their hearts.

-Chi Ju-

Chi Ju was pursued by Wan ever since they were teenagers. It all started with a family vacation to the Gulangyu Island. Wan came from a poor village. Like most girls her age, she dreamed big. Ever since she was a child, she had a laundry list of big dreams. They always changed from day to day. However, one dream always stayed the same. By the time she was fifteen, that dream almost looked dead.

But then came the summer of 1981.

Wan went out to shop with her mother for dinner. By this time, she figured that the only way she could get off of the island was to find a husband. She didn't want any of those boys from her village.

"They are too stupid and ugly," Wan complained.

"They aren't all that bad," her mother told her. "Give them a try at least." Wan folded her arms across her chest.

"I will not," she mumbled under breath.

"What did you say?" her mother asked.

"Nothing," the teenaged girl lied. She followed after her mom, frowning. Wan always hated this part of the day. Her mother would take all day just shopping and talking with the ladies in the village. There wasn't many kids her age on the island. Wan carefully looked around for a place to escape. If she was going to escape today, she would have to do it fast. Which way was she going today?

But then, her focus splintered off when she noticed a boy her age walking into market with his parents. Wan had never seen them before in her life. From a distance, she could tell that they weren't from this island or the village. These people had on Western-style clothes. The couple's son intrigued Wan. So much so that she started wandering over to him. By the time the boy looked up, he was already in her sights. The girl stood inches away from her new target. She broke into a huge grin.

"Hi!" the girl said. The boy blinked at her.

"Uh… hi…" he said. Wan turned to his parents.

"Welcome to Gulangyu Island," she said, bowing. The parents fell for her angelic little charms. Their son, on the other head, tilted his head. Something about this girl screamed, "run away". Too bad he didn't listen to his instinct.

Today, Chi Ju plays peacemaker. He's caught between Wan and Mei. Both of his girls hate each other, but he is the one that has to keep them from killing each other. Sometimes, Chi Ju will try to look for a distraction. Maybe this new baby would be a distraction.

-Lili-

Lili would do anything for his daughter. From the moment that Szu was born, he saw his job was to protect her and keep her happy. Lili look her into his arms after she was wrapped into a blanket. Her little heart melted his heart.

"She's beautiful," Hark said.

"Yeah," he said. Throughout the years, he worked to protect and make her happy. Lili felt like he failed to protect her when she was raped. For a time, he and his wife felt powerless. Their beloved daughter wasn't singing like she used to. Szu wouldn't even leave her bedroom. Her parents were worried that the rapist wouldn't get caught. They wouldn't feel relief until Junjie was found guilty for his crimes. Hark and Lili became worried again when the disowned was out on bail.

Lili was not only worried for his daughter, but for the rest of the clan and the baby to come.

-Man-

Despite Qian not being his son, Man still cared about him as such. He promised his girlfriend at the time, Tse, as such. From the moment he held the little boy in his arms, Man found himself feeling like he was more family to the baby and his mother. He still couldn't believe that he went from a single psychiatrist to a father figure in a short amount of months. Tse even had the doctors put down her boyfriend's last name on the birth record for the child. Man himself didn't know how to take this at first.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked.

"Yes," Tse said, cuddling her newborn son. "You will be like his father now."

"But, we aren't even married."

"Yes."

Man gave her a strange look. "What do you mean by yes?"

Tse gave him a tired smile. "Yes, as in I will marry you when you ask me to." Her boyfriend gave her a stunned look as he stumbled backwards.

"What?!" he asked. Tse giggled.

"When the time is right, of course," she said. "Is it okay if I go to sleep now?" Man smiled again.

"Of course you can," he said. Tse closed her eyes and went to sleep.

Ever since then, Man found himself treasuring each day with his wife and step-son.

-Yao-

Yao and Ju sat in the doctor's office waiting for the results. They couldn't even look up at the clock ticking in the background. Ju and Yao lifted their heads when the door opened. Biao walked into the office. The clan leader gave him a strange look.

"Biao?" she asked. "What are you doing here?" He had no emotion on his face as he closed the door behind him.

"I'm shadowing a doctor today," he said. "Your other doctor will be here in a moment." Ju fidgeted with her hands in her lap.

"Is it bad?" she asked. "Can you at least time me that?" Biao nervously clenched his teeth.

"I'm not supposed to say any of that," he admitted. "We should wait until the doctor gets here."

"Please?" Ju begged, pressing her hands together. Biao sighed and dropped his shoulders.

"Alright," he said reluctantly. "But the problem isn't with you. It's with him." Yao raised his eyebrow.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Biao closed his mouth just as the original doctor walked into the door. The med student turned his head.

"Sir, may I tell them the rest?" he asked.


	26. Barren Lands

Match Twenty-Six: Barren Lands:

"Sir, may I tell them the rest?" Biao asked. The older doctor nodded.

"You may do so," he said. The medic student sighed and pushed his black-framed glasses up.

"Yes," Biao said. "We ran the test on both of you. Wang-qiánbèi, you have a low sperm count."

"What?" Yao asked.

"Your count is 14 million," the med student said. "Just below the normal range."

"But… how did this happen?" the older man asked. The doctor walked over to the med student. He looked like a pine tree compared to the short dark haired Biao. This old doctor could be his uncle or grandfather.

"There are many factors that cause this," he said. "Smoking, drinking, drugs, being overweight, radiation, antibodies, certain medications, your job, exposure to heavy metal, tumors, chromosome defects, industrial chemicals, infection, defects to tubules, particular surgeries, overheating your testicles, hormone imbalances, celiac disease, varicocele, certain medications, problems with ejaculation, undescended testicles, or emotional stress." Yao froze at the words "emotional stress". He began to see himself in that kitchen again. Ju held his hand.

"I've studies all of Yao's health records and the tests that he did prior to this one. I already ruled out most of these factors myself," Biao said. "How has work been?"

"Good," Ju said.

"Any stresses lately?" the doctor asked. Yao pressed his lips together.

"I don't really know…" he mumbled. He could smell the smoke again. The man started to tremble.

"Can it be reserved?" Ju asked.

"Oh yes," the old doctor said. "There are plenty of treatment options. Surgery, medicines for infections, treatments for sexual intercourse problems, treatments and medication for your hormones, and even assisted reproductive technology."

"And if none of those work?" Yao asked. Biao lowered his brown eyes.

"You might have to consider the option of a sperm donor," he said in a quiet voice. The male patient's stomach dropped.

"Oh," Yao murmured. "I see." Ju squeezed his hand.

"Thank you for telling us," she said. Her husband couldn't look up at anyone. He squeezed Ju's hand back.

* * *

It didn't take long for the dads and moms of the clan to hear about Yao being sterile. Hen-to and Fei gave him sympathetic looks.

"You can still have a child," Fei said. "It took Cai and I several times before we had Kee. My wife had two miscarriages. After she got checked out at the doctor, she got pregnant and the baby lived." Yao pressed his lips together and nodded.

"What do you plan to do?" Hen-to asked.

"I don't know," Yao admitted. He rubbed his forehead. It was embarrassing enough that he was firing blanks, but he had something else on his mind. Yao couldn't stop seeing flames in his mind. He could hear the screams of children begging to be let out. Their little hands pounded on the heavy doors. It didn't help that they were all locked in the kitchen. Yao huddled over on the ground.

"Yao?" Hen-to asked. "You okay?" Yao turned his head.

"I don't feel so good," he mumbled. "Can I leave for the day?"

"Of course," Fei said. "We'll let Ju know you had to leave the meeting early."

"Thank you," he said. Yao dragged himself to his feet and walked out the door. Hen-to and Fei watched with a sense of unease.

* * *

But, Yao did not go home. Instead, he dragged himself to the Sun house. The man breathed heavily as he pounded on the door. Relief washed over his face as Man answered the door.

"Yao?" he asked. "What are you doing here? Don't you have a meeting today?" Yao shook his head.

"I need to talk to you for a minute," he said. "Can I come in? I won't be too long."

"Uh… sure…" Man said. He moved aside to let the older man in.

"Thank you," Yao said, bowing. He walked into the house.

* * *

"What is on your mind?" Man asked. Yao sat down on the gold and red living room couch. He rubbed his forehead for a bit.

"I don't where to beginning," he confessed.

"Take your time if you need to," Man said. Yao dropped his hand by his side.

"I keep having strange dreams," he said. The psychiatrist raised his eyebrow.

"What kind of dreams?" he asked. "Do the best you can to describe them." Yao looked out the window.

"I keep dreaming that I was a child working in a kitchen of an old restaurant," he said. Man gave him a strange look.

"Why would you dream something like that?" the therapist asked. The older man shook his head.

"I don't really know."

"What about this dream?"

Yao's eyes trailed to the ceiling. "I see myself as a ten-year-old boy from a poor village. I had to go into the city to work."

"Did you have to do this growing up?"

"No. I had a decent childhood growing up. But this, I don't know what to make of it."

"What happened in this dream?"

Yao sighed. "I, as a ten-year-old boy ended up working at some restaurant."

"Excuse me, but when does this take place?"

"What?"

"What year is this dream? Is it modern times?"

"No, I think this was before the war. I want to say the 30's at least."

"You sure?"

"Yes. I could tell by the cars on the streets. And the way some of the buildings looked."

"What do you remember about this restaurant?"

Yao tilted his head. "Really old. The wallpaper was peeling and the walls looked like they were about to cave in. It always like grease and rotting wood."

"What did the kitchen look like?"

"The yellow wallpaper was falling off. The smell of spices are overpowering. I think the lights weren't working properly either. The kitchen always looked like a mess. We used fire and gas to cook everything."

"We?"

"There were at least ten other children with me. We all had to wash dishes, clean the floors and kitchen tools, and go pick out the ingredients for the meals." Yao shook his head. "We slept in the kitchen because we had nowhere else to go. We didn't make enough make to live in a better place."

"What was your boss like?" Man asked. The other man trembled.

"Unpredictable," he said. "He could be nice to us when he was sober. But when he got drunk…" Yao grabbed onto his wrist. "His temper was the worst. Sometimes, he would beat us over the tiniest mistakes. We would hide from him when was drunk."

"Why didn't you go to the police?"

Yao shook his head. "What choice did we have? We needed the money. Most of us were too scared to speak up. I needed the money because my little sister was sick and Mama was dying in the village. What little money I made went back to my old village." He looked down at his feet.

"There was something wrong with that restaurant."

"What was it called? Do you remember?"

Yao rubbed his forehead as he tried to think. "I don't know. Lucky Dragon? Golden Dragon? I can't remember that much. But the police started coming by the restaurant almost every day. There were rumors of some of the children were used to smuggle drugs and stolen property. I didn't really see anything. Or rather… I pretended that I didn't. A couple of the girls kept disappearing outside with much older men." He drew his knees to his chest.

"Things got worse when the restaurant started to fail," he said. "The chef had a bit of a gambling problem. He couldn't keep up with his payments. He took his frustration out on us. The customers started asking questions."

"What happened?" Man asked.

"I overheard him talking one night," Yao said. "'I can't pay them back. I can't pay them back. I've got no choice. I've got no choice! The next night, I could smell smoke. When I woke up, I could see flames in the kitchen. The other children ran to put out the fire while others were pounding on the doors, screaming for help."

"Were the doors bolted shut?"

"Yes." Yao's whole body began to tremble as he huddled up into a ball. "We all died in the fire. He killed us to get the insurance money on his shady restaurant for his debts." Up until now, Man had been taking notes.

"How do you think this ties into your impotence?" he asked. Yao looked up at him with a blank stare.

"Huh?" he asked.

"Why else would you come to me?" the therapist asked.

"You don't believe me, do you?"

"I do, I am just trying to find a meaning to all of this. Have these dreams affected you in your waking life?"

Yao looked down at his hands. "Every time Ju and I would start to have sex, I would have strange flashbacks about fire and it would all go blank. She claims that I would freak out and not remember what happened afterwards. On the day of Tina's party, I had another flashback about fire and wound up on the balcony."

"What did she say happened then?"

"She said that I didn't who she was and that I was married to her." Yao trembled and pulled his knees to his chest. "And you know what the weirdest thing is? It all feels so real. Like these aren't dreams at all. It's like I'm remembering it." Then, Man suggested something that he usually never would to any of his patients.

"Yao," the therapist said.

"Yeah?" the other man asked. Man pressed his silver-framed glasses up on the bridge of his nose.

"I am about to say something crazy here," he said. "But do you think that you might be looking at images of a past life of some kind?"

"What?" Yao asked.

"I am trying to explore different possibilities with what you described to me," Man said. "It's just one theory for now." Yao looked up at him with pleading eyes.

"No matter what you think, you can't tell Ju," he said. "She's still dealing with me being impotent. Please don't tell her, not until we've worked through that problem at least. Please?"

"You are no different than any of my other patients right now," Man told him. Yao bowed his head.

"Thank you," he said.

"What are you going to do for now?" the therapist asked. The other man rose to his feet.

"Work through our options," Yao said. "See what's going to work for us. I do not have to come using a sperm donor or surgery." Man bowed his head.

"In that case, I wish you luck," he said.

"Thank you," Yao said again. He turned and walked out the door.


	27. Celibate, Visions, and Pregnant

Match Twenty-Seven: Celibate, Visions, and Pregnant:

-Ju-

It's been five weeks since Yao and I last had sex. We talked with the doctors after we sat down and talked to each other.

"I do not want to use a sperm donor," Yao flat out told me.

"Okay," I said. "We won't get a donor. What about surgery?" My husband clenched his teeth and looked down at his hand.

"I don't want to do that either," he said.

"We might not have a choice. We'll put that on the table last, okay?"

"Fine."

It took almost all night to talk this through. Yao was adamant about not going into surgery or getting a sperm donor. The situation reminded me of the "family curse". On my mother's side of the family, if a girl was born, their fathers could never have any more children. As far back as I could remember, they would end up with impotent, leaving them having to carry on the family with their daughter. Every generation, they would pray for a son to break the curse. My grandparents almost broke it when Jianjun was born, but then my mother was born are him. After I was born, my father wasn't able to have anymore children. Even when he tried to have a son with a family friend, the damage was done. In attempt to break the curse, my father, Hen-to, and Fei all buried my umbilical chord in the backyard near a small fertility shrine.

I rubbed my forehead. Did that attempt fail? Has the curse already claimed Yao?

"It's the curse," I muttered.

"What?" my husband asked. I lifted my head.

"There is a little bit of a curse on my mother's side of the family," I said. "Every time a girl was born, the man would become impotent."

"What do you mean?" Yao asked.

"It's a bit hard to explain," I said. "But somehow, girls on her side of the family drain fertility out of the men. Grandma and grandpa thought they beat the curse, but then my mother was born."

"Are you saying the curse got me too?"

"I don't know."

"But we haven't even had any children yet."

"I know."

Yao rubbed me on the shoulder. I looked up and saw with a calm look on his face for the first time since that last doctor's visit. He shook his head.

"I'm not ready to place it all on that just yet," Yao said. "We're not going to call it a curse. Think through this logically, okay?" I pressed my lips together.

"Alright," I said.

"Very good," he said.

* * *

The doctor put Yao on a strict regimen. He had to take fertility drugs to increase his sperm count. He had to take them morning and night. Yao decided to eat a meal while doing so.

"If I don't eat, I'll get sick," he said.

"How long do the have to take these pills?" I asked.

"Eight weeks," Yao said.

"Eight weeks?" I asked. "Dang." He wore looser clothes in his crotch area. To top it off, no sex until he finishes the medication. Apparently, I don't really need to do anything on my part. It's a good thing I still have that Hello Kitty massager Tina got me as a high school graduation present. I guess playing with myself could increase my chances of getting pregnant. I will have to look that up later.

I sat and watched Yao take his pill. He made another bitter face. I could already predict what he was going to say next.

"So bitter," he complained. Yao quickly took a drink of his tea and started eating. For now, I hope this will work.

* * *

Lately, there's been something else on my mind. Do you ever get the feeling that you are being watched? For the past couple of days, I feel that someone has been following me around. When I turn around, there is no one there. I would chalk it up to my mind playing tricks on me. But, it didn't feel right. I doubted that Jianjun would stoop that low. Would he? Junjie's too stupid to do that and he's too broke.

I probably am thinking about this much. But still, I can't stop thinking about it. I need something to preoccupy me. I went down to the main part of my campus to look for something to do.

* * *

That night, I came home early.

"I'm home," I said. Yao had gone down to a clinic to monitor his sperm count. I don't know how long that will take him. I sent him a text asking when before I cam home. I hadn't expected to do much that evening. My homework was already complete and I didn't feel like eating dinner yet. Maybe I could read or watch a little TV.

But then, I froze when I got to the living room.

A woman dressed in a dark purple kimono sat on my couch. She had a white kitsune mask on her head. Her red umbrella sat at her feet. Her gold eyes followed my every movement. I took a step backwards.

"Who the hell are you?" I asked. This woman peered at me.

"Shion," she said. "And you are?"

"What are you doing in my living room?"

"I was called here."

"I didn't call you here."

"I know you didn't."

"My husband is not here and I doubt he called you here. He would've told me over the phone."

Shion shook her head. "He didn't call me here either."

I blinked at this weird woman. "Then… what are you doing here? Get out of my house or I will call the police!"

"The person who called me hasn't arrived yet."

"Get out of my house!"

"I will." Shion rose to her feet and walked out the door. I shivered as she walked past me. I heard her pause at the door.

"I will be back when the one who called me arrived," she said. When I turned around, she was gone. What was all of that about?

* * *

It's been quiet over these past few weeks. I didn't tell Yao about that Shion woman. I couldn't make sense of it myself. Who called her there? What did she want with them? Yao gradually started making progress. They aren't shooting for a high number with him.

"We're trying to at least get him to the minimum number to be able to reproduce," Biao told me over the phone.

"How is it going?" I asked.

"Really well," he said.

"When can we… you know…"

"We'll rest the tests when he finishes the meds and we'll let you know. How have you been doing with your end?"

"Good." It still felt awkward to tell him about my reproductive status. I know that's studying to be a doctor, but still. It just doesn't seem right. I tried to push that thought out of my head.

"Keep me posted?" I asked.

"Of course," Biao said.

"Thank you," I said.

"You're welcome," he said before hanging up.

* * *

About a month later, Yao and I tried again. We decided that this would be the last chance before relying on surgery.

"I don't want to use a donor," Yao said when he was on top of me. I reached up and pressed my finger to his lips.

"Don't think about that," I said. "Just enjoy tonight." I leaned up and kissed him on the lips. He kissed me back as I wrapped my arms around his neck. We slowly sank into another last chance as I pulled him down on me.

* * *

About three weeks later, I told the pregnancy test. I wanted for three minutes one last time. If this doesn't work, I will call the doctor and schedule a surgery. I looked around my bathroom. I keep forgetting that three minutes can feel so long.

When the time on my phone buzzed, I looked down at my test. My eyes widened as I gasped.

The test revealed one little pink plus sign.

* * *

A little extra...

Suburban Day

Three little girls play hopscotch on a sidewalk on a sunny day.

Bright colors.

Birds are singing.

Pan upwards.

Color turns darker.

A chopper rips through the air.

Tall dead black trees stand tall with black dots floating up to the sky.

Suburban Island

Coming February 1st, 2018


	28. Acacia

Match Twenty-Eight: Acacia:

Alfred walked up to Florence and Lydia's door and knocked. He held a bouquet of red roses. He didn't care if they were as cliched as hell. The American man thought the color would look great with Florence's hair. Alfred couldn't wait to see her again today. He straightened up his shirt as the door opened.

"Alfred!" Florence said. "It's so nice to see me again." She raced forward and hugged him. The American man smiled.

"I'm sorry I haven't over to visit more often," he said. "I've just been so busy. Arthur's been acting strange lately. Can I come in?"

"Sure," Florence said.

"Thanks," the American man said. Alfred followed the tree spirit into the house.

* * *

Lydia sat on the couch with her cell phone out. She glanced up when she heard the door close.

"Yo!" Alfred said. Lydia pressed her lips together and rolled her eyes.

"Nice to see you too," the American man said. He sat down on the couch with her. "How have you both been?"

"Good," Lydia mumbled.

"A bit tired," Florence said. Alfred gave her an odd look.

"How tired?" he asked.

"I find myself falling asleep in the middle of the day," she said. Lydia froze over her phone.

"Why didn't you tell me about this?" she asked.

"I didn't want you to wait," her sister said. "You've just graduated and you'll getting to get into your new school."

"That's not the point!" the younger girl yelled. "You have to tell me these things so that I can get you to the doctor."

"What good will that do?" Florence asked. Lydia and Alfred peered at her.

"What?" they asked. The tree spirit's emotionless face didn't change.

"I already know," she admitted. "Your hushed tone over the phone told me everything." Lydia shut her eyes and cursed herself.

"How long have you known?" she asked.

"Since last month," Florence said. Lydia pushed her brown bangs from her forehead.

"Damn it," she muttered. Alfred looked between both girls.

"Uh… is there something wrong?" he asked. Lydia groaned and rolled her eyes.

"Nothing," she lied. "Why do you have to here again?"

"Lydia!" Florence said. "Enough!" Her sister stared at her with big eyes.

"Florence?" she asked.

"I actually like Alfred," the tree spirit with her pale wrists shaking. "I know, you're trying to keep him from getting hurt when I die, but can you try and get along with him." The younger sister's face became bright red.

"What?!" she cried. "I never said that!"

"I know you didn't," Florence said. "I saw it in your intent."

"No, I…!" Lydia started to shout. Her older sister eyed her, waiting. Lydia sat there with her mouth open. After a good three minutes, she finally closed her mouth. She folded her arms across her chest and puffed up her cheeks. Alfred sat there the whole time, looking at both sisters.

"Uh… Everyone cool?" he asked. Neither sister answered him. Alfred directed his eyes away from them.

"Okay then…" he muttered.

* * *

Lunch was awkward. Neither sister spoke. Lydia stared down at her plate. Alfred glanced over at Florence.

"Is she going to be okay?" he whispered. The younger glared at him and snorted. The American man shrugged his shoulders.

"Let her be," Florence said. "She'll be fine."

"But…" Alfred said.

"She'll be fine," she said again. The American man closed his mouth.

"Okay," he said. Lydia rolled her eyes and shoved food into her mouth.

"So… What's everyone doing after this?" Alfred asked. No answer. He pressed his lips together.

"This is killing me," he muttered. He looked over at Florence's plate and tilted his head.

"Hm?" the American asked. "You're not going to eat?" Lydia looked up when he asked that question. Florence looked at her plate.

"Oh," she said. "I guess I'm not hungry." Lydia trembled and put down her fork.

"Alfred," she said. "Can I talk to you in private?"

"Huh?" he asked.

"Now!" the younger sister shouted. The American man turned to the tree spirit.

"It's okay," she said. "I'll wait."

"You sure?" he asked. Lydia cleared her throat loudly. Alfred threw back his head and groaned.

"Fine," he said. "I'll be right back." Lydia gets up and walks down the hall. The American followed behind. Florence started to play with her food.

* * *

Lydia sighed and put her hands on her head.

"It's getting worse," she said.

"Huh?" Alfred asked. Lydia dropped her hands. She took a deep breath.

"She doesn't have long to live," she said. "It's worse than I thought."

"How long does she have?" Alfred asked.

"I don't know," the teenaged girl said. "I have been talking to the doctors for weeks now. They can't really do anything now." She clenched her fists by her slides.

"Damn it," the girl muttered. "Damn it. Damn it!" Alfred stared at her silently. Lydia glanced over at him.

"It's not that I hate you," she said. "It's just…" Lydia grabbed onto her arm. "I can see where this is already headed!"

"What do you mean?" Alfred asked.

"You'll fall in love with her," she said. "You'll get close and become sad when she dies." The girl put her hands on her head.

"I just don't see the point," she said.

"Well, what does she want?" Florence asked. The girl gave him a blank stare.

"Huh?" she asked.

"You're trying to protect her, but that's not what she wants, dude," he said. Lydia glared at him.

"What do you know?" she asked. Alfred shrugged.

"I like her," he said. "I'm not sure if she likes me in the same way I do."

"What's your point?"

"I'm trying to say is that I want to be by her."

"Why?"

"Because I want to."

"But why? Why are you so infatuated with my sister for? What makes her so special? Why? Why?! I don't get it!"

"Does there have to be a reason?"

"Yes!" Lydia started to see red.

"Is everything okay?" Florence asked from the dining room.

"Yes!" Alfred and Lydia were quick to say. The younger sister turned back to the American man.

"What I want to know is why do you care so much about why I love her?" Alfred asked. She raised her eyebrow.

"Isn't it obvious?" she asked.

"No, it's not," he said. "Flo's not as naïve as you think she is. She knew that she was dying."

"I know that!" Lydia said with her nose wrinkled.

"I don't think you do." Alfred tilted his head. "Wait… Are you trying to say…?"

"What?" she asked. The American man smirked as he chuckled.

"You have a thing for me too," he said. "I think you're jealous and you have a crush on me too." Lydia's nostrils flared as she glared at him.

"No!" she snapped.

"You sure?" he asked with a grin.

"Shut up!" the younger girl yelled. Lydia pushed him aside and stormed down the hall to the dining room. Alfred shrugged to himself and followed behind.

* * *

Florence looked up when Lydia and Alfred returned to the table.

"Everything okay?" she asked.

"Yes," her younger sister and her suitor said in unison.

"Everything is fine," Lydia lied. She flopped down into her chair. Florence turned her attention to Alfred.

"What she said," he said. He pulled out his chair and sat down. "Hey, you've actually eaten a little bit." Lydia looked over at her sister's plate. Florence looked down at the fork in her hand.

"Oh, so I did," she said. The tree spirit took another bite of her food. Alfred and Lydia looked at each other. Silently they decided to watch her as she ate. The younger sister's hand trembled as she picked up her own fork. If she was going to give her sister some peace in her final days, maybe she would have to tolerate Alfred in their lives a little bit longer. Lydia puffed up her cheeks as she lowered her fork.

"Something matter?" Florence asked. Her younger sister shook her head.

"I'm not really hungry anymore," she said. "Thanks for lunch." The young girl got up and left the table.

"Lydia?" Florence asked. Alfred gently touched her wrist. The tree spirit turned her head.

"I'm sure she's cool," he said. Florence didn't answer at first.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," she said. The tree spirit looked down at her plate and took another bite of her meal. She and him spent the rest of lunch eating in silence.


	29. Good News

Match Twenty-Nine: Good News:

Bik would have two reasons to be happy within two weeks. Her morning started off as nothing special.

"Good luck, baby," the nurse said over the phone. "I love you too." She hung up as she switched the "closed" sign to "open". It didn't take long for the first patient to come along. Bik was about to walk to her desk she heard the bell ringing on the top of her door. She turned to see Ju walking into the lobby. Automatically, her heart pounded against her chest.

"Are you…?" she started to ask.

"I think," Ju said. Bik covered her mouth as she started squealing.

"Okay," she said. "Come with me." The nurse took Ju by the arm and led her further into the clinic.

"Have you had your period yet?" Bik asked.

"No," the clan leader said.

"When was your last one?"

"Last month, I believe."

"When was the next one supposed to start?"

"Hang on." Ju pulled out her cell phone and went to the period tracker app on her phone. "It was supposed to start today."

"Any nausea? Throwing up? Tired?"

"Yes, yes, yes."

"Breasts swollen?"

"Not yet."

"Any food cravings?"

"Rice noodles. Does that count?"

Bik tried her best not to break down squealing. "How many tests have you taken?" the nurse asked. Ju did a quick count on her fingers.

"About three or four," she said.

"And you came here to be certain?" she asked.

"Yes," the clan leader said, nodding. Bik cleared her throat.

"Are you sure you don't want to check with a hospital first?" she asked.

"I will go there too," Ju replied. "I want to make sure before I tell Yao and the rest of the clan." The nurse quickly nodded her head.

"Okay," she said. "We'll do a standard pregnancy test right away. Though, you should still go to the doctor to get checked out. I am curious about something, though."

"What?" Ju asked.

"Why come to me here?" Bik asked. "Why not go to the hospital or catch me at home?"

"You weren't home by the time I got up," the clan leader said. "I don't want to tell Yao and the clan until I am certain. Ideally, I don't want to say anything until the second trimester. Make sure my chances of miscarriage dropped." The nurse gave her an understanding smile.

"I understand," she said. "Please follow me." Ju followed her to the bathroom.

* * *

One trip to the hospital later, Bik got a call on her cell.

"Hello?" she asked.

"It's positive!" Ju said over the other line. "I'm pregnant!" The nurse about fell out of her chair.

"Really?!" she asked.

"Yes!" the clan leader said. "By three weeks." The nurse's squealing could be heard from the hallway.

"Ow, my ear," Ju said. Bik took in heavy breaths.

"Oh, oh, I'm sorry," she whispered.

"I will tell Yao myself," the younger woman went on. "Please don't tell the others yet." Bik sat up straight and nodded.

"Right, right," she said. The nurse turned her head. She rolled her chair towards the cracked door. Bik couldn't see anyone in sight.

"I mean it," Ju said. "I don't want to get up anyone's hopes and then there's a miscarriage. Yao's been working hard to get his count up again."

"I understand!" the nurse said. "I won't say a word!" Bik paused for a hot second. "What if I tell Biao?" Ju sighed over the phone.

"Fine, but no one else," she said. "I really mean. Don't go telling anyone else. Not the other mothers and not Hen-to!"

"Okay, okay," the nurse insisted. "I won't say a word. I promise!" Ju breathed out over the phone.

"Oh god," she said.

"What's the matter?" Bik asked.

"I think I'm going to be sick," Ju said in a whisper.

"Okay, I'll let you go," the nurse said. "Bye-bye."

"Goodbye," the nurse said. Bik broke down squealing and dancing around in her seat after hanging up. She spent the whole day grinning like a madwoman.

"Did your son pass his finals?" one of the girls at the clinic asked. Bik turned to her grinning.

"Not yet," she said. "But, I'll be a grandma soon!"

"Ooo, is Xin pregnant?" another girl asked as she walked by.

"Not her," Bik said. "Is there anything you wanted to tell me?"

"Oh," the first girl said. "Ang-tàitài will be coming in a little bit late today."

"Is that it?" the nurse asked.

"And there are some more paperwork to look over," the other girl said.

"I see," Bik said. "Thank you." She turned and went back to her office. Her girls turned to each other, whispering.

* * *

Meanwhile, Ju came home. She found Yao sitting on the couch in their living room.

"Well?" he asked. His wife began to smile.

"I'm pregnant," she said. Yao rose to his feet.

"My balls work?" he asked.

"Yes," Ju said.

"My balls work!"

"Yes!"

"My balls work! My balls work!" Yao raced over and embraced Ju. The couple broke into laughter. He kissed her on the forehead.

"We should celebrate!" he said. "We have to tell everyone in the clan."

"Wait," Ju said. "I think we should hold off on telling the right of the clan. I want to be sure that I can get pass the time where miscarriage is a high chance."

"We have both a nurse and a med student to make sure everything is okay," Yao said.

"I know, but…" she said. She rested her hand on her stomach. He rested his forehead against hers.

"It will be okay," Yao insisted. "We should at least tell Bik and Biao."

"I've told Bik this morning," Ju said. "And I think she's told Biao too." Her husband gave her a quick kiss. Ju didn't feel like getting up from his arms.

* * *

One week later, Bik sat at her desk doing paperwork. She started imagining how Ju's baby would be. It would be nice to have another girl. Her thoughts to turned back to her own sons. Biao and Xin had been dating for four years now. The nurse lost count of how many hints she dropped for them to get married. She so badly wanted to be a grandmother. Both Biao and Chih had taken their exams and were well on their way with their careers. One son had a girlfriend already. That left finding Chih a girlfriend. He didn't seem to show interest in a relationship.

This would not do for Bik. Maybe she could introduce her son to some nice girls. Along with getting Biao and Xin married. But first, she had to make sure that Ju and Yao had a healthy baby.

The nurse roughed up her hair. "Oh my god! I've got do much to do with my children's futures!" she cried. Suddenly, her phone rang.

"Hello?" Bik asked.

"Hey, mom," Biao said on the other line. The nurse sat up straight in her chair.

"Yes, dear?" she asked.

"Mom, I have something to tell," he said.

"Are you and Xin getting married?" Bik sounded like she was about to jump out of her chair and fly away.

"No… I passed my exam," her son said. The nurse froze in her seat.

"Oh," she said. "Yay! That's really great!"

"Mom, I told you we we're getting married yet."

"Yeah, yeah. What about your brother?"

"I don't know. He wants to tell everyone himself."

"Excellent! We should celebrate tonight!"

"Can Xin come with us?"

"Of course! She has to! She's going to be part of the family soon."

"How's Ju doing?"

"Great. Baby's fine. Yao is happy that's going to be a dad and that he can still reproduce."

"I would imagine so. Oh, I have to go. I have another call."

"Okay, I love you."

"I love you too, mom."

Bik broke down squealing again in her chair. Ju was pregnant and now Biao was one step closer to becoming a doctor. If Chih passed his exams, she would be in the trifecta of parental happiness.

However as the Law of the Wasteland goes, for every moment of happiness comes a wave of misery. What's going to happen this time?


	30. Raining Blood

Match Thirty: Raining Blood:

Lydia Harel. Who are you? What happened to you? Why are you trying to go 6972 Polanów so badly even after it's gone? What are you after? Where do you go?

Ludwig rubbed his forehead. All the files covered his desk. How long has it been? Every lead he followed ended up being a dead end. He didn't know who would be able to know anything about the Harel family. The German man sat back and sighed. How could someone, let alone a whole family, disappear without a trace?

"What are you trying to tell me, Lydia?" Ludwig asked. One possibility played over and over again in his head. But, that didn't seem possible or rather he didn't want it to be so. Could she and her family really have been… He turned his had when he heard the doorbell ring.

"Hm? Who could that be at this hour?" The German man got up and walked to the front door.

"Who is it?" he asked.

"I'm lost and I need directions," a woman's voice murmured. Her voice sounded strangely familiar. Ludwig looked through the peep hole. The woman in the red coat stood outside. He quickly opened the door. She stared at him with that thousand-yard stare. Her right hand clutched her collar.

"It's you," Ludwig said. "Who are you really? You can't be Lydia Harel. You would have to be at least eighty. Are you her granddaughter? But how?"

"Who… am I?" the woman asked. Her eyes looked so empty. The German man wasn't sure if he was looking at him.

"Yes," Ludwig said. The woman pressed her lips together. He walked back into his house. The German man made it into his office. All of the paper lay scattered on the desk. He picked up the file of the Harel family's pictures. Ludwig spotted Lydia's picture as the second to last on the right. A sinking realization came over him. He ran to the front door.

"I know who are you now," he said. "Are you…?" Ludwig stopped in his tracks.

The woman had disappeared.

Ludwig backed up from the door. His stomach turned as he dug in his brain for an explanation.  _That can't be possible. What is going on here?_  Ludwig felt an icy chill running down his spine. When he turned around, there stood the woman in her thick red coat. Her eyes were filled with tears. Her face looked so sullen like the bones were sucking in the skin. In fact, her skin looked like in was crumbling on her hands and her face. Ludwig held up the picture by her head.

"Are you…?" he asked. The woman trembled. She murmured something barely audible in the room. A trail of blood ran down the corner of her mouth.

"What did you say?" Ludwig asked. The woman's eyes looked hollowed out and bright red. More blood ran from her mouth.

"They killed me in the war!" she screamed. "My family was innocent! They took everything from us! We lost our bakery and our home! It's all because he betrayed me!" Droplets of blood splashed everywhere. They felt so hot against the German man's skin. The woman's tears began to turn into blood.

"I don't understand!" Ludwig shouted as he began to tremble. "Who are you? Why are you telling me all of this? What do you want from me?!"

"I want to go home!" the woman screamed. Her eyes started to glow blood red. More blood splashed onto the floor. The house began to shake. Ludwig saw only red and black around him. He tried to scream, but his voice got lost in the violent silence.

He could smell fire. And then…

Nothing.

* * *

Ludwig awoke to wailing around him. He could only shades of black, red, and gray. The smell of smoke made his nose curl. His eyes darted around the emptiness.

_What is this?_

He tried to find an escape, but didn't even know where he was. He froze as he felt like he was being watched. Ludwig slowly turned around. The woman floated inches away from him. Her eyes were now just deep red empty pits against her wrinkled mask-like face. She kept scratching her right arm.

"Who are you?" Ludwig asked. "Tell me, who are you?"

"I am Lydia," the woman said at last. "Lydia Harel." The German man shook his head.

"No…" he said. "That can't be. She went missing and was never found. Her and her whole family."

"It is true," she said. "I was killed during the war. My lover betrayed me. He promised me that my family and I would be spared. He lied to me! He lied to me!"

"But what does this have to do with me?" Ludwig asked. "I didn't do anything to you. I don't even know you."

"He was you!" she screamed. "You betrayed me!" The German man shook his head.

"No, I didn't!" he shouted. "I am not the man you loved."

"Liar!" Lydia screamed. The nails on her right hand formed together into a long dagger. "I will never forgive you!" She raced towards her target. Ludwig tried to turn and run away.

_My leg… Why can't I move?_

Stab!

His eyes widened at the numbing sensation. The blade with through him, but he couldn't feel it. His eyes trailed downwards to see the empty pits of Lydia's eye sockets. When she opened her mouth, blood swirled inside. His jaw dropped as a deeper shade of black dropped into his vision.

* * *

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

_How is he, doctor?_

_It does not look good. We've run the tests._

_And?_

_I'm sorry to say it. But there's little to no brain activity. He's just a living organ farm._

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

_So what should we do?_

_Let's talk to the family first._

_Okay, doctor._

What? What is this? Ludwig could smell bleach all around him. When he opened his eyes and looked down, he saw a young man with blonde hair lying unconscious in a hospital bad. Tubes and machines from the World War II era were hooked up to his body. Ludwig couldn't see anything else in the white room. By the door, he could see a doctor talking to a man and a woman. This wasn't any ordinary doctor either. Judging by the dark brown uniform, he had to be a military doctor. Probably worked for the SS. The woman at the door broke down crying. The man beside her, probably her husband, rubbed her on the shoulder. After a few more seconds, the doctor walked over to the young man lying in a coma.

Germany felt a heavy twinge in his chest. Blood erupted from his mouth. The image around him started to fade away and disappear. Lydia Harel's face appeared in his mind. Tears of blood ran from her eyes.

"Traitor!"

"I didn't… do… anything to… you…" He peeked to see tears from Lydia's empty eye sockets.

"Why?" she asked. "Why did you leave me? Why did you betray me? Don't you love me? Don't you remember who I am? It's me, Lydia. It's your Lydia, Nikolaus." Tears ran down the German man's face. He began to see Lydia Harel in a time when she was alive. Her smile rivaled the sun. She looked so much healthier back then. Tears filled the German man's eyes.

"I didn't betray you," Ludwig said. Tears streamed down his face. He leaned in and kissed her on the lips. Only for a brief second, he saw himself in happier times with her. Whether this was real or an illusion, he could not say.

She faded into soft red dust.

* * *

-Hours Later-

"I'm home," Gilbert said. From the first site of the open front door, the Prussian man had a gut feeling that something was amiss. He ran inside with his gun drawn.

"Hello?" he asked. "Ludwig? Ludwig? Are you in here?" Gilbert took one more step forward when his boot touched an arm in the dark. He looked down and all of the color drained from his face. Ludwig lay on the floor with his shirt covered in blood and his eyes wide open.

"Ludwig! Ludwig! Speak to me!" Gilbert shouting, shaking his brother. He heard him make a small mumbling noise. The Prussian man checked for a pulse. He breathed out a sigh of relief, but he knew that he had to move fast. Gilbert pulled out his phone.

"Berlin emergency," the operator said on the other line.

"My brother's hurt really bad!" Gilbert shouted. "There's blood on shirt, but I can't find the source!"

"Is he still breathing?" the operator asked.

"Just barely! Oh god! Please hurry!"

"Okay, give me your address."

"It's… It's…"

"Take a deep breath and calm down."

"But…"

"Do you want to help your brother? Then I'm going to need you to calm down and give me the address, okay?"

Gilbert took in a deep breath. "Alright."

"Thank you," the operator said. An ambulance arrived within thirty minutes. Ludwig was taken away on a stretcher. Gilbert followed behind in a panic.

The whole time, Lydia Harel watched them. She held her hand to her chest. She wasn't finished and she wasn't the only one.


	31. Dinner Celebration, Announcements, and Foreboding

Match Thirty-One: Dinner Celebration, Announcements, and Foreboding:

-Ju-

Saturday evening. We all ate at the Nobu Beijing restaurant. I had always wanted to eat at this place, but never had the time or the occasion.

"Is there where you want to eat?" Yao asked.

"Of course," I said. "I always wanted to try out that place."

"Alright," he said. "I'll be happy with what you pick." At dinner, the atmosphere put me in a relaxed mood. I think I might have been here before when I was little. I didn't exactly remember when, though. I looked at my clan from the head of the table. Everyone was lost in food and conversation. Mei threw back her head, laughing. I had my hand to my stomach. Yao held my other hand.

"You're not having the sushi tonight?" Szu asked.

"She can't, dear," Bik said. The younger girl tilted her head.

"Why not?" she asked. I sat back, smiling.

"You'll find out soon enough," I said. I reached over and picked up a dim son with my chopsticks. Bik stopped Szu from asking another question. The waiter came by our table with more drinks. I glanced between Biao and Chih over my non-alcoholic tea. Who was going to be the first one to make the announcement. I smiled over my glass. So far, Bik hasn't been running her mouth about anything. (That's a first.) The waiter came back to our table with the main course.

Halfway through dinner, Biao clanked his glass. All eyes fell on him as he stood up. Bik looked like she would fly away.

"Everyone," he said. "I have an announcement to make." Hen-to had to hold Bik's hand. Biao broke into a little smile.

"I passed my exams," he said. We all broke into applause. Biao bowed.

"Thank you," he said.

"That's my baby!" Bik said. "Now he needs to get married!" Xin blushed as Biao rubbed his forehead.

"Mom," he muttered. The nurse leaned against her husband, smiling.

"Why do you have to do that, dear?" Hen-to asked.

"Can you blame me?" she asked. "I want grandchildren!" Biao and Xin held their bright red faces. Chih laughed and smacked his brother on the back.

"You better get on it," he said. Biao looked at him, frowning.

"Shut up," he hissed, sitting down. Chih looked up to Bik and Hen-to's eyes on him.

"What?" he asked.

"Don't you have something to share?" the nurse asked. Chih gave her an innocent look.

"Hm?" he asked. Biao nudged him in the arm.

"Come on, man," he whispered. "Spit it out." Chih lowered his eyes. I raised my eyebrow.

"What are your exam results?" I asked.

"Oh," he said, softly. Bik narrowed her eyes at him.

"Chih?" she asked. My ear twinkled as I kept my focus on him. Was he… laughing?

"It's not good," he said.

"What?" the rest of the clan asked.

"I'm sorry," Chih said. Biao had the same facial expression I did. Bik's eyes widened as she started to panic. Hen-to raised his eyebrow.

"What grade did you make?" he asked.

"Not good," his younger son mumbled. I could've sworn that he was trying to keep from laughing.  _What are you up to?_  Bik frowned as her face turned pale.

"Will you have to repeat your final year?" she asked.

"No, I don't think I will," Chih said. "I mean, what's the point?" Bik broke down trembling.

"What does that mean?" she asked. Hen-to had to hold her up by this point. Biao turned to him, frowning. Chih lifted his head, grinning.

"It means I made two zeros and a one on all of my exams!" he bragged. The rest of the clan was quiet before it sank in. Bik's face turned bright red.

"Don't do that to me!" she shouted. "You had me thinking you failed." Biao slapped his brother in the head.

"Why would you do that?" he asked. Chih gave him a goofy smile as he shrugged.

"My bad," he said. "I just had to do it."

"Jerk," Biao muttered. Once Bik calmed down, she perked up. She smiled and clapped her hands together.

"I've got a doctor and lawyer now!" she said. "This calls for a toast!" Bik picked up her glass. "To Biao and Chih's successes!"

"Cheers!" we all said. Glasses clinked all over the table before we all took a drink. I happened to look over and notice Bik's eyes on me. Oh crap. Don't you do it. We talked about this. Don't you do it. Don't you do it.

"Ju, don't you have any good news to share?" she asked. Damn it! I mean, this had to come out sometime, but I wanted to be sure that I was out of the critical time of pregnancy. I wanted my chances of miscarriage to be lower before I told anyone. All eyes fell on me. I lowered my chopsticks. Yao held my hand.

"Ju?" Mei asked.

"It's okay," Bik whispered. "You have a doctor and nurse to take care of you." I pressed my lips together.

"I do have an announcement to make," I said. I turned to Yao. He gave me a nod as if to say it was okay. I lifted my head.

"We're having a baby!" I said. The rest of the clan stared me with big eyes.

"Wait…" Mei said. "Are you…?"

"Yes," Yao and I said together. The mothers broke down cheering. Mei broke into a huge grin.

"Congratulations!" Xin said.

"Thank you," Yao said. I smiled and took a drink of my tea. The waiter came around and collected our dirty plates.

"Waiter!" Hen-to said, sticking his hand up in the air. "We're ready for dessert."

* * *

Around ten o'clock, I could hear a soft whisper as the hairs on the back of my neck stood up. I glanced around behind me, but there was no one there.

"Something wrong?" Yao whispered. I turned back, shaking my head.

"I just thought I heard something," I said. "Excuse me." I stood up and walked down the hall to the bathroom. I couldn't even hear Yao calling my name. What was happening to me? Why was I leaving the table? Where was I going?

I came down to the end of the hall. Waiting for me was Shion with her feet inches off of the ground. I tilted my head.

"You," I said. "What are you doing here?" Shion lifted her head.

"You're here," she said.

"What am I doing here?" I asked. Shion stretched her arm in the air.

"The person who called me is finally here," she said. I looked around with a confused look on my face.

"Where?" I asked. "I do not see anyone else." Shion walked over to me and placed her hand upon my stomach. I tried to push her away.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Yes," she said. "He's the one who called me here."

"Wait… He? How do you know it's going to be a boy?"

"I listened to his voice even before he arrived."

"What are you talking about? Who are you?"

Shion backed up and bowed. "I haven't properly introduced myself. I am called Shion and I listen to the voices of certain unborn children."

"Huh?" I asked. She looked down at my stomach.

"He's got quite a story to tell me," she added. I started to back away.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I asked. "Look, I don't know what you are going on about, but you are creeping the hell out." Shion's eyes seemed to glow in the dark.

"Do you even the story that he has to tell?" she asked.

"What are you talking about?!" I yelled. "What story? I'm only three and half weeks pregnant. I won't be able to tell what gender the baby's going to be! Enough with this bullshit! You are freaking me!" When I looked again, she was gone. I darted my eyes back and forth. Where did she go? That's when I heard her lay it all out for me in my ear.

" _Your son is destined to change the fate all humans as the end drafts narrow. I will be back to hear more of his story in the near future._ "

When I turned around, I found that I was alone. When I returned to the table, I smiled and acted like nothing was wrong. But, I still couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was heading for us all.

"Is something wrong?" I heard someone ask.

"Hm?" I asked, turning my head. Yao had a concerned look on his face. I blinked before I smiled.

"No," I said. "Nothing's wrong. Nothing at all."


End file.
